Docile
by The Magnificent It
Summary: Naruto's dream has always been to be a ninja, an unfortunatley futile dream, due to circumstances out of his control. That is, until now...Will have side yuri, in much abundance. Vote if you wish for it to continue
1. Chapter 1

**Wrote it when I was bored, may continue it, may not. **

**Try to keep up, far more depressing story then I usually do. **

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The long pitter-patter of rain drilling into wooden shudders, pipes and the tops of buildings was both a worrying sound a calming sound to Naruto. The boy of seven, an orphan for as long as he could remember, scuttled about the dimly lit apartment he lived in, placing pots and pans to hold the water leaking from the roof.

"Ma, sure wish Oba-sama would advance me my monthly pay, these holes sure do get annoying during the rainy season." Naruto half grumbled, half joked to himself, the dingy apartment feeling large and imposing without anyone else living there. "Naw, she doesn't need to, I'd just be bothering her, not to mention that the season should be over soon. One month max." Naruto shook his head, being a bother, that was something he wouldn't allow himself to be.

After all, he was ignored for some reason, right? It was probably that. His classmates always said that he was a 'Monster bothers', and the adults always called him just 'Monster', so it made sense he was the latter. Why else would they ignore him so?

The _pat pat _of rain hitting the pans was a little annoying in Naruto's opinion, but he would rather put up with that then have to deal with the hours of scrubbing to get rid of the mold that would manifest itself if water were allowed to sink into the floorboards. Naruto would rather put up with that.

There was a banging from below, a low _thump_, followed by a muffled shriek of "You brat! Stop that, or else I swear I'll come up there and give you a beating!" The old woman's voice shrieked from below him. She was the person that allowed him the privilege of staying in her...humble...abode, the large apartment rundown after several decades of service. He was the only one who lived there other then her now, her sour attitude driving everyone else away, making Naruto's somewhat forced residence there her only source of income.

This never stopped her from making violent threats whenever Naruto did something that struck her as 'annoying', which wasn't above making a noise loud enough to be heard from below.

"G-gomen nasai, Oba-sama!" Naruto called back. "DON'T CALL ME OLD!" Her voice shrieked back. Naruto set to work, he knew better then to believe that she wouldn't follow through with her threats, like that time with that wild dog. A shiver ran down his spine as he recalled that particular insident. He still had nightmares.

Grabbing a large amount of rags, and several of his shirts, he lined the metal pots with them, muffling the sound of rain hitting the metal pots. He looked grimily as he realized he had one change of shirts now, and tomorrow was supposed to be picture day at school. Well, he never really looked that good anyways, and the public school he went to had fairly high standards; although not as high as the other school in Konoha.

Naruto checked the clock across the wall, upon seeing it was late, took towards the kitchen as the rain started to lift a little. Reaching into his cupboard, he found what he was looking for, an instant bowl of ramen. Popping the top off, and setting it into his old clunker of a microwave, Naruto took the three minutes it took to cook to examine a small book he had on his table.

Clicking on the light above, he took to slowly reading the title; his kata-reading was coming along slowly unfortunately. Slowly sounding it out, Naruto began to read.

_A Guide to Shinobi: What Being a Ninja Means, and what to Expect_

_By now, you may ask, being a ninja is a both a great honor and privilege, and at times can be a great burden. You must ask yourself, do I have what it takes? Grueling training, long hours, and a high possibility of being killed are just some of the many problems on can face in the line of work. But the advantages to this living severely outweigh the cons. _

_First of all, being a ninja means that you are entitled to reach a level of ability that seem almost inhuman to some. Walking on vertical walls, disappearing in a flash, not to mention gaining both mental and physical attributes that seem impossible to a normal person. These are the physical benefits of being ninja. Financially, being a Shinobi is also a plus, as the average Genin, the lowest of the low, can make up to and is not limited to 600 000 yen in one year. A Jounin is capable of making twice that in a day of work. If this isn't enough incentive, fame is also something that follows Shinobi of all nations. The great healer, Tsunade is just an example of someone who has reached prowess in this field, noted for her amazing skills earned through training, and her will to protect those precious to her._

Naruto sighed a little, oh how he wished to be like that. Strong, rich, and famous, not some orphan, living alone in his house with the owner constantly hounding him, the entire village hating the very fact he was breathing. Feeling a sudden rush of despair, Naruto quickly stuffed these thoughts away; after all, it was the next paragraph that always made his insides squirm fairly harshly.

The part that explained how and why, he could never actually be a ninja.

_You may ask yourself 'Hey! I want to be ninja! Fame, money, and skill, what more do I need to know?' Well, there are two things that keep the elite population of ninja in a tight nit group. 1) Ninja can only be women. This may be a shock to some, but it is true. Several centures ago, males stopped carrying the gene that allowed chakra coils to manifest themselves on a level needed to be Shinobi, although women retained that ability. Because of this, only women can be Shinobi, so if you are a man, or a member of the male populace, I would strongly suggest that you set this book down. The second reason it can be hard is; most of these women develop into lesbians. Yes, another shock, but its true. 97 of women who become ninja are in fact homosexual, a small 3 are straight. Scientists sadly cannot explain this phenomenon, it simply occurs. Chances are, that if your reading this as you or someone you know who has developed chakra coils, then you or her are in fact a lesbian. Many times, women who are in denial of this fact, or do not wish to be looked upon as such, actually shirk away from this line of work, choosing to ignore this most likely truth, that they in fact love women. This makes the already small population of women who can us 'chakra' even smaller._

Naruto, frankly didn't know what 'lesbian' was, but he understood the meaning of the previous paragraph. He, being a boy, could never actually be a ninja, his dream, and a fruitless one. Naruto sighed loudly as his microwave gave a loud beep. A shout of "I said stop making noise, you worthless GAKI!" Was heard from below, before Naruto dug into his meal, savoring the soothing hot broth.

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School was, not that Naruto would ever admit it, crappy. Unlike the Shinobi school that received such attention and prowess and continued funding, the normal, civilian school was sadly run down, and fairly shabby. The textbooks were exceedingly old, only depiction the main nations, and not areas such as Kusa, or even sections of Iwa, which weren't founded until much later after they were made.

"Uzumaki! Tell me, how is the primary agricultural resource sold by Iwa?" His teacher, a crumpety old man who Naruto still didn't know the name of grunted. Most just referred to him as Mr. T, the odd name originating from the fact he was from the far west, across the ocean.

"G-gomen. I couldn't find the page in m-my book, I think it was ripped out." Naruto stuttered weakly. Mr. T gave him a harsh look, before a single piece of chalk beamed the poor seven year old in the face. "BAKA!" He said coarsely, the rest of the class snickering. The shocking thing was, most of the class was about twice Naruto's size, the meaning being that most were being held back, failing the obviously far to harsh questions.

"The answer is minerals, like iron, which is the primary element used to make kunai, which we ourselves import." Mr. T said superiorly. Naruto moaned a little, rubbing the red spot on his seven-year-old forehead. "I'm sorry Mr. Uzumaki, did you want to ask a question?" Mr. T asked Naruto sarcastically. Surprisingly, Naruto responded.

"Yes, what's the difference between an import and an export?" He asked innocently, his head twisting to the side. Mr. T gave him a single look, before violently whipping his chalk-brush at his head, sending it bouncing off. "GAKI!" He shouted again. "Do any of you even pay attention to the miniscule education I'm trying to give you?! Class dismissed, I can't stand to look at any of you, get out of my sight!" He said, turning his back to the class.

Every student immediately took towards the door, save for one, Naruto. He sat there with a troubled pout on his face, before he stood, grabbed his books, and walked slowly up to Mr. T's desk. Starting timidly, Naruto attempted to apologize.

"Uh, Mr. T-sama? I-uh, well, wanted to um… apologize, I'm sorry that I'm stupid. I'll try harder next ti-" Naruto was suddenly taken aback as the elder teacher whirled violently around, fixing Naruto with a furious snarl. "I SAID GET OUT OF MY SIGHT WIT-LESS MORON!" He screeched directly into Naruto's face.

Giving a squeak, Naruto ran through the door at lightning speeds, as Mr. T grumbled about annoying, bothersome brats.

The hallways were overtly crowded as children filed out, Mr. T's early recession from the classes being almost two minutes before the bell went. Dodging and slipping through the brunt of them, Naruto found his small cubby locker, the words 'WORTHLESS IDIOT' Plastered on it with permanent paint, a small, deformed image of his face etched below it. Cracking it open and grabbing his bag, Naruto took off out the lead entrance, lost among the sea of heads.

He didn't see the three pairs of glinting, malevolent eyes watching him leave.

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Naruto walked away from the streets, choosing instead to cut through the children's park. His backpack smacked painfully against him, as he ran at almost top-speed, trying to hopefully throw off anyone who might be following him.

Taking a run down an ally-way, Naruto ran past a concrete wall, before something hard smacked into his head. Falling over and skidding his knee, Naruto stood up blearily as three figures walked up, cutting off any exit. "Well, well, this is a surprise, old fox-face idiot, what a pleasure."

"Futoi-san." Naruto whispered. Futoi, a boy two years older then him, a little on the heavy set, walked up slowly, his two goons slowly marching in as the encircled him. "I didn't see you today, gaki. Shame to, because I was short cash for lunch, and I needed to 'borrow' some. Are you avoiding sweet, lovable me?" Futoi asked in a mock tone of sincerity.

"G-gomen-nasai, Futoi-san, I was late coming to school today. I can get you money tomorrow if you ne-" Naruto was quite suddenly pushed into the concrete wall, the wind knocked out of him from its force. "Shut up idiot! When I want money, you give it to me, you hear!?" The three of them closed in, looking menacing.

"G-gomen!" Naruto said vainly, only to be met with an "I said shut-UP!" and a punch to the face, knocking him down. The beating commenced, the three class bullies violently kicking and punching his curled up form, Naruto's only defense being to simply remain docile until they finished. They soon stopped, there breathing heavy as the examined the many bruises Naruto now sported.

Grabbing Naruto's collar, Futoi decided one last hit was in order. "And remember you little bitch-" He whispered coldly, his fist cocked back as he prepared to deliver one last punch. "-you don't ever come to school without giving me your money, or so help me, I kill y-" Furoi's voice however, died in his throat.

Naruto's swollen, bloody eye slowly cracked open, fixing the slightly overweight boy with a single, slitted, blood red eye. Naruto couldn't understand it, there he was, about to be smashed in the face by his tormentor, when the boy stopped, let go of his collar, and took several terrified paces backwards.

Naruto, slumping a little against the wall, holding his possibly broken arm, stared right into Futoi's own eyes. The boys looked horrified at Naruto, as Futoi uttered a single word. "Bakemono."

Pain, emotional scars, and tormented feelings welled up in Naruto as tears threatened to leak out. Grabbing his nap-sack quickly, he took off running, his injuries forgotten as tears streamed behind him.

Futoi stared, bewildered with his two bully friends, as they both simultaneously took off to tell there mothers about how the vicious monster had 'attacked' them.

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The door to Naruto's apartment slammed open loudly, before being smashed shut again. Naruto, his body still roughed up, covered in mostly dirt and a bit of blood, leaned heavily against the door as a shout of "Shut up you brat!" Was heard below.

Sobs, small, the ones made by great sadness, threatened to escape his throat as Naruto slowly slid down the large doors. The sensation of misery was overwhelming to him, as he knew what would happen next. It always started when something like this happened.

The people who were actually primarily reponsible would go to there parents, who would become scared, thinking Naruto would hurt them, or there child. The parents would rally, and soon the hunt would start, the hunt for his head.

Naruto still couldn't understand it. Why they chased him so, why they hated him so much, why it was only him. No parents to defend him like the others, no friends who wouldn't abuse the friendship, and no skill or abilities to at least protect himself. He was...Really worthless.

"W-why." He whispered as his sobs continued. "Why am I so stupid? Why am I so weak? Why is everyone better then I am?! I just want...To know." Naruto finished desperately. It was almost a whisper, like on the wind, before a sudden burning sensation filled Naruto's entire body. _**"...as you wish..."**_

"G-guh!" Naruto grimaced as his hands fingernails grew to claws, his entire body enveloped in what appeared to be a red fire. The sensation intensified to a point where it was almost unbearable, before Naruto's head erupted in a splitting headache. The pain however just got worse. Grinding his teeth, Naruto tried to force himself to bear it.

His hands shaking, the only thing that Naruto could think was _'What's going on?! What's happening to me?! Am I turning into...A monster?!" _Hot tears, ones born of even more overwhelming pain pooled down as the red flames began to recede, as Naruto lay on the ground of his apartment, choking sobs escaping his strained throat.

This is how a team of Chuunin found him a few minutes later.

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"Well, as I briefed you before, I, along with my team of ninja, were just getting back from a delivery mission. We were passing by the building, when to our surprise, a simply massive, but controlled burst of chakra caught our attention. Thinking it might be a strong but inexperienced enemy, we broke into the room that we picked it up. We found him like this." Mayaku said, indicating towards the small boy who sat in the chair opposite the famous and omnipotent Hokage, and older woman in swishing white and red robes, on her head was adorned a triangular hat with the symbol of fire on it.

"Thank you, you and your team may leave now." Sarutobi, the eldest ninja in the village indicated. Mayaku nodded, before turning away and marching out the door, leaving the Fire Shadow alone with a small blonde child, who was shaking like a leaf, terrified.

Before even saying anything, Naruto piped up before she could speak. "G-gomen Hokage-sama, I-I'm sorry, I won't bother you again." Before shakily standing up and turning to leave. "Get back here, Naruto." Sarutobi said.

Slowly and fearfully turning around, Naruto trudged back to the chair, and sitting down. "I-I'm in trouble, aren't I?" He asked meekly, as the woman stood up. Sarutobi had to admit, even being her age, with all the experience in the world of Shinobi to be a Kage, Sarutobi had to admit, she'd never seen anything like this. The boy across from her sat almost stock still, exuding an aura of sadness and fear, because of some newly added 'features'.

"Well Naruto, I'm gonna be honest, I don't think your so much in trouble, as in need of a bath." She indicated to his newly added, particularly fuzzy fox ears, and the tangled mess that was his new bush fox tail, his whole body being a little scuffed up looking. Sarutobi sighed. _'The council will have a field day with this' _She thought.

"R-really?" He asked hopefully, pulling the tail in towards him and hugging it like a blanket. "Yes, but I'm first going to need an explanation from you as to how you so suddenly went through this change." Sarutobi inquired. Naruto however became tense, his clutch on the newly acquired tail tightening slightly as a troubled expression came on his face.

"W-well, I just got back from school, when suddenly I got really hot, like I was burning. It got really bad at one point, and I fell unconscious." Naruto said, which was partially the truth; he only left out several important details.

"Hhhmmmmmmm…tell me Naruto, how were you feeling before that?" Naruto bristled a little at that question; he'd been specifically trying to avoid a question like that. He did after all hate to be a bother; even to people that didn't even like him. Sarutobi waited patiently, but was only met with silence, as the small boy fidgeted in the chair, playing with the tail still.

"Something happened, didn't it Naruto?" Sarutobi sighed. It was almost funny, if it weren't so sad. Naruto was complex, his fear that if he was too big of a problem, the village would get rid of him. A fear brought forth only through many years of silent abuse, although the elder Kunoichi knew for a fact that at times it could get quite physical.

Standing up, she walked around her large mahogany desk, kneeled down in front of the quivering boy and enveloped him in a hug. Naruto literally melted into it, sobbing softly into her chest. He told her everything, how his teacher had yelled at him, the bullies, and how they'd called him a monster. By the end of it, Sarutobi had to admit, she was probably going to have one hell of a 'talk' with the teacher and students.

Whipping a stray tear off Naruto's face, she took a step back. "Well Naruto, this is quite a problem..." Sarutobi said thoughtfully as Naruto's ears drooped low. "Gomen." The boy replied mournfully, before going to leave again. "That's not what I meant Naruto." She said, shaking her head. Naruto turned back to her, hiding behind his tail yet again.

"First off, you seem to be able to use chakra now." _'Probably because of 'it'...' _"Not to mention you've gained certain...Characteristics that are different from normal people." Sarutobi began to address from behind the desk again. "D-demo, but does that make me a freak?" He asked uncertainly, afraid of being wrong. Sarutobi sighed again _'Where was I when he was getting this messed up?' _

"No Naruto, it doesn't make you a freak." Naruto however gave her a funny look, strongly reminding Sarutobi of a fox, the ears giving incentive. "So how can you explain any of this?" He said, indicating to the changes. "Um, well, uh, you see, it must be a-" _'Think Sarutobi, THINK!' _"-New bloodline!" She said a little bit loudly.

"Wow! A bloodline! ...What's a bloodline?" Naruto said, his eyes sparkling with newfound curiosity. Sarutobi chuckled a little at his newfound enthusiasm. "Well, it's a special ability someone gets from their parents, there usually found in ninja clans." She nodded sagely.

"So does that mean that my parents used to catch on fire, grow fox eats and tails, and have the strangest appetite for Aburaage." Sarutobi's eyebrows shot to her forehead, as Naruto gave a sheepish grin. "Well Naruto...I wouldn't really know." Sarutobi admitted, giving a puff of her pipe.

A comfortable silence was made, and for a brief period Naruto was just comfortable with that. However, there were still questions that needed to be answered. "Naruto, do you actually enjoy going to school?" Sarutobi asked. Naruto gave her a quizzical look. "You're supposed to like school? Why?" Sarutobi sweat dropped.

"Well, I was just thinking, considering that you've developed the ability to use chakra...How would you like to be a ninja?" She asked. Naruto sat stock still, his eyes the size of dinner plates. Then, he began to shake, before a wail escaped his lips. Leaping at the Hokage with speed she thought not possible, knocking her over, Naruto wailed deeply into her.

Sarutobi had thought she'd upset the boy, but as he cried loudly into her chest, she realized something. They were tears of happiness. His words were muffled, but she could still hear them quite clearly. "DOMO ARIGATOU HOKAGE-SAMA! YES! YES-YES-YES-YES!" Naruto wept freely, his mind running on pure emotion.

"T-that's great Naruto...But could you get off me?" She asked sheepishly as Naruto's tear streaked face looked up. Almost like an electric rod had zapped him, Naruto sat back in the chair across the desk, his head low with embarrassment. "Gomen." He moaned a little, as Sarutobi just shook her head, sitting back down.

"That leaves only one problem." Naruto's ears perked up at this. "Problem?" He asked, not in the know. "Well, some people, who will remain nameless, happen to dislike foxes, as you may have noticed." Naruto nodded, recalling vaguely that many of the particularly nasty villagers had taken the liberty to call him 'fox-shit' when he walked by.

"Well, these people might make you a target, what with your new assets. Personally, I have no problem with this, but I think that for your own safety, that you should probably find a way to hide it." Naruto nodded, understanding what she was getting at. "Okkaaaaaayyyy...How?" He said.

Admonished, the Hokage sighed. "That...I do not know."

Silence. That was suddenly broken by a grumble. Raising an eyebrow, Naruto blushed red. "G-gomen...I haven't actually eaten today, the last thing I had was a bowel of ramen yesterday." He said, rubbing his stomach. "I...See." The Sarutobi sweat dropped.

"Well, I suppose if you can at least hide your tail, we could try and convince people that the ears are fakes." Sarutobi nodded sagely. Gaining a thoughtful pose, Naruto began to think. "AH! I have it!" He said. Concentrating hard, he forced the bushy fur that made it up to flatten as thinly as possible. Sliding it under his shirt and wrapping it around his chest, it was almost like the appendage wasn't there.

"That should do." Sarutobi said, "I guess we can get going. Do you know what you want to eat?" Naruto gained a thoughtful pose...

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"Thanks Oba-san!" Naruto cried happily as he dug into the Aburaage ramen he'd specifically ordered. Grinning like the fox he so embodied, Naruto dug in, gulping it down like there was no tomorrow. Sarutobi sighed; not ordering anything, as she knew the price of Naruto's meal alone would be tremendous.

Old man Teuchi grinned happily, wringing his hands, just thinking about it.

"Now Naruto, in a week, you start ninja school. You'll need to get your hands on some ninja tools, and a few books, alright?" Naruto stopped eating, giving the elder woman a quizzical look. "But...Well, I don't really have enough money for that. Could I borrow some of yours and pay you back. I promise I'll get it to you!" Naruto said exuberantly.

Sarutobi sighed, the atmosphere about her changing dramatically. "I've told you before Naruto, if I could, I'd give you a mansion to live in with a hundred servants and all the money in the world, but I can't, not after the council issued that rule." Oh god how Sarutobi hated that rule.

Apparently, the villagers had taken a notice to how Sarutobi had taken such a shine to the boy. Even going as far as to take care of him, shielding the boy when he was small from the orphanage that would have surely awaited the boy. The law had been passed on the grounds that she was showing far too much favoritism towards Naruto then anyone else, which, they pointed out, was unfair to the rest of the ninja populace.

Thus, after three days of straight feuding, Sarutobi grudged reached an agreement. She would take care of the boy until he was of an age where he could take care of himself. After that, she was forbidden to help him financially, the number of times she'd bought him a meal was already in itself pushing the boundaries.

Gulping down another bowel, Naruto raised an eyebrow at catching the Hokage's far off look. "Is something the matter?" Sarutobi looked up. "No, just wondering something. I suppose I could ask one of the teachers to supply you with some of the things you'll need, although I don't personally like it."

Finishing the bowel with a mighty slurp, the now fox eared boy stood to leave." Its alright Oba-san, I'll find a way, I usually do. Sorry to bother you for the meal, I'll pay you back later." Naruto said with a wide grin, before running off. Pushing a flap aside, Sarutobi called after him "Don't forget, I wanted a doctor to check you out later Naruto. Stop by the hospital and ask for the appointment there!" Naruto gave a wave, signifying a response.

Teuchi walked up to the stand, cleaning a bowel. "Well that was interesting. Any particular reasons he was wearing those fake fox ears though?" Teuchi asked. Sarutobi just sighed for the umpteenth time that day. "He's growing up, apparently."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Umino Iruka was generally considered someone who was level headed, and fairly good looking. Not the most beautiful Kunoichi, but she was quite fair, chocolate brown eyes, tanned skin, and physically fit, the only thing that could possibly distract from her features was a large scar running across her face, horizontally.

Standing up behind her desk, dressed in the traditional Chuunin uniform of a flake jacket, form-fitting pants, sandals and a Konoha hiate, she addressed the rowdy group of girls in front of her. _'I wonder why the Hokage asked me to give this speech to them anyways? We get new students all the time...' _Iruka thought, holding up the small note that said 'Do not open until day student arrives.'

Flipping it open, she began to read aloud "Alright, listen up everyone. We have a new student coming in today. Now first off, I want you all to be kind to this person, as they are a little different then the normal people taught at our school." Iruka told them. Many heads peaked up, previously dosing.

"Everyone, I'd like to introduce you all to-" The booklet said to point to the door, which Iruka did "-Uzumaki…Naruto..." Her face literally paled as the sliding door opened, in walked a small blonde-haired boy, dressed in a white shirt, and blue shorts, with fox ears.

"Ummm... Hi." He said nervously as the entire class leaned in for a closer look.

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**Wow...Ya well, that was interesting. So many firsts have been achieved here today, that I can't really count them all.**

**And now to address the many thoughts of "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS! EVERYONES A CHICK, AND A LOT OF THEM ARE GAY! WHAT THE HELL YOU MAGNIFICENT BASTARD!?"...Ya, something like that. Well, this is a story that's been nagging at me for a while, and well, I thought I might do something you've never seen before (Even weirder then cutting strings) so, I slapped this together.**

**The reason I made every ninja aside from Naruto a woman is mostly because this is a fanfic. Can you all just imagine what kinda stories this one will spawn? Part of me actually gave thought to making the majority of them actually straight, but then I thought, 'Hey, if I'm gonna run track, might as well run the extra mile. **

**Also, if your worried there will be no romance, and many of you are probably panicking about how "POOR NARUTO IS SURROUNDED BY WOMEN, AND NONE OF THEM WANT HIM!" Bull-crap, I left a whole three percent for him, and I have yet to define who is gay, and who isn't. So there.**

**I also (Yes still ranting about this) wanted to chunk in a lot of yuri, because as I have mentioned before, there is a signifigant lack of high quality, romanticly intwined, well written, and in large quantity yuri fics out there. Most are either not really that good or interesting, or are far to short to be really that enthrawling. Frankly, I feel at least one person should stand up to the plate for this issue, it might as well be someone whose 'magnificent'.**

**Cue giant yaoi fan-girl group scream of "YYYOOOOUUUU BAAAAASSSTAAAAAARRRDDDD!" Hey, don't hate the author, if you don't want to read this anymore, then thats fine with me. Your free to concentrate on my other stories. **

**Okay, I would also like to mention that this story isn't going to be some lame ass, 'OMFG TWO CHICKS KISSING! ORGASM!' fic, I intend to have a multitude of both complex and realistic relationships, with both drama and romance. So there.**

**You should all know that I'm only experimenting with this, and if you want me to continue this story, just say so. If I'm absolutely flooded with comments like "NO! NONONONONONONONONONONONO! NO YURI!" Then fine, I'll discontinue this, and take it off the website. If I don't, then hey, I can do long updates of this on the side, in between cutting strings.**

**Now then...Lets see, what else is on my mind I wish to continue ranting about...A yes!**

**I understand some maybe a little upset that I'm using the cliche plot device that Naruto now has fox ears and a tail. Well, I have plans for this, so don't worry. Also, the the fangirls whom are still a little upset about this, I have decided to, in all fairness, make Naruto the most adorably sad little puddle kawaii-ness that some may vomit from the sheer cutness of it. Thats dilomacy for you.**

**I Implore you to leave comments and reviews, these could make or break this story. REVIEW! OR NO KAWAII NARUTO!**

**P.S. Just as a side note, I will explain next chapter as to why Naruto can now use chakra.**


	2. 4 Years later

**Yes, I have actually chosen to update this story, as I'm having a bit of writer's block with Jashin, and I want to let the fans wait a little while with Cutting Strings. Yes, I know, cruel, but it ensures more reviews later. **

**The few that have bothered to review have been thankfully supportive of this story, so I have decided to continue with it, despite some skepticism on the side, which is to be expected. Honestly, does everything I write have to be considered odd and strange?**

**The answer: HELL YA!**

**Also, this chapter will have some more explanations for you all, so that may sate a few of the more skeptical.**

**HIKEN!**

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To some, Naruto's introduction into the academy would have been the point in some fairy-tale where everything would be right in the world. He'd grow up strong, become everything he dreamed, find a girl, and live happily ever after.

Those were the fairy-tales.

Sitting in his desk, fidgeting with his tail, Naruto sat slumped low in his chair. His head barely stood over the table, his fox ears poking up and listening intently to Iruka as she began to explain the theory of chakra manipulation, a review for the final test the next day. The position Naruto was in was not one that was for comfort, far from it in fact, it was one born out of the need to hide.

His back was beginning to ache, although Naruto much preferred this over what would happen if he showed any signs of movement or sound that attracted attention. He had learned very quickly while attending the academy that if you attracted to much attention that trouble would ensue, something Naruto found difficult, considering he constantly wore a bright orange jumpsuit, and was also the only 12 year old boy in his class and school

Thinking back, he could still remember his first day there...

_//A flash back? So early? Wow...//_

_The entire class leaned forwards, their eyes fixed on the small boy who stood directly in front of them, fidgeting slightly. Iruka's voice had died in her throat as they all stared in shock at the child who had so suddenly entered, Naruto beginning to wonder if they would ever stop. He got his wish._

_A girl in the back, a rather plain girl with brown hair, raised her hand. "Iruka-sensei? Didn't you say boys couldn't be ninja?" She asked. A voice, gruff and intimidating from the back shouted "YA! WHATS THE DEAL, HUH?!" Inuzuka Kiba, a rather brash girl shouted. Iruka sighed while kneading her brow as she set the brush down._

_"Well, apparently there's been a mistake or something. Uzumaki, I'm going to have to escort you out of the class you so rudely interrupted, as the Hokage has made a mistake in the student applications." Naruto's ears drooped as he picked up on the sense he had done something wrong._

_Stepping out of the class that had now erupted in whispers, Naruto was led by the scruff of his shirt to the office, where the principle, an older woman was speaking with Sarutobi. "Excuse me, I found him in my class with a forged student application slip. Forgive me Hokage-sama, but I believe Uzumaki here may have switched the real one with a fake." Iruka said, transfixing Naruto with a look of disgust, a look that didn't go unnoticed by the aging woman._

_"There is no mistake, Naruto is attending the academy." Sarutobi turned back to her conversation with the principle. Iruka however was unconvinced. "There must be a mistake, Uzumaki is a male, and thus cannot use Ninjutsu. Am I mistaken?" Iruka asked disbelievingly._

_  
Sarutobi sighed before turning the chair completely around. "I assure you Iruka, Naruto is a one of a kind case, but there is no mistake. Naruto, due to a set of unique 'reasons'-" Iruka's eyebrows shot up "-He can now use Ninjutsu. I have spoken with a physician about it, and he has informed me because of this 'reason' that Naruto's coils have become active to the point where he can use Ninjutsu. That is why he is here." Sarutobi's long-winded explanation ended._

_Iruka looked unconvinced, and went to speak, but the principle spoke up. "Don't you have class to teach Iruka?" She inquired, shutting her up. Iruka glanced down at the blonde, who perked up a little, before sighing and marching away in defeat, Naruto saying good-bye to the aging Hokage and following after._

_By the time Iruka got back, the classroom was a war zone. Paper planes flying around, talk that could be heard down the hall, and even a few Bunshin running around of the more privileged and talented clan members. "Attention!" Iruka's voice rang out, as the entire class fell silent, taking there seats again, some of the more daring students pointing at the still form of Naruto._

_"I have spoken with the Hokage, and as it has been made apparent, Uzumaki-sans coming to our class was no mistake. He will be attending this class with us for a long time, so please be nice." Iruka pointed to an empty seat beside what appeared to be a comatose brown pineapple with arms, which Naruto reluctantly sat in, almost every pair of eye there transfixed on his increasingly nervous body._

_A few hours later, the first bell rang, signaling the lunch period. Naruto, not wasting time, took off to his locker, the other students doing the same. That is, until he remembered he didn't have a lunch, and that he had forgotten to pack one for school. His stomach grumbled at the sheer thought of it._

_"Gomen..." Naruto mumbled as he reached into his pocket, before pulling out a miniature map of the school. About five minute's later; Naruto pulled the door leading to the eating area open, heading to a small bench that wasn't occupied._

_His ear twitched suddenly as a noise, or lack there of, caught his attention. Slowly raising his head, he peered around warily as every single pair of eyes was transfixed on him. Anxiety blossomed in Naruto's chest as he failed to hear a single noise, as the sound had been stolen like some wraith. _

_The silence however, was broken abruptly. _

_Naruto flinched as a pair of arms smacked loudly against the table as Yamanaka Ino, a small blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl gave him a scrutinizing glare. "Just what are you?" She said, as the entire lunchroom crammed in to get a better look._

_"Uh...Heh-heheh, I, uh, really don't know what yo-" Another bang as Kiba leered on Ino's left. "Don't give us that! You're a boy! Boys can't be ninja, so you're not normal! So if you're not normal, what are you?" Kiba snarled, Naruto's previous anxiety growing to overwhelming levels. _

_Naruto remained silent his ears drooped low. Kiba ground her teeth; she was not someone that liked being ignored. "FINE! I guess your so much of a little-girl that the adults just chucked you in here, you sissy weakling!" She growled. "T-thats not true!" Naruto squeaked, although one look from Kiba silenced him._

_"Come on, let's go, he's not talking." Ino sighed, as the crowd slowly filed away, although the hairs on Naruto's neck refused to go down, as the sensation eyes were on him still remained. _

_//End Flashback//_

Sadly that wasn't the end of it. Naruto, being the only boy in the school, was heavily excluded from activities in school and out. Iruka was a fair teacher, but with teamwork being one of the fundamental pieces of being a Shinobi, he was only ever placed in a group, never was he selected. And even then they usually chose to ignore him.

That wasn't all. Bullying occurred quite frequently towards him, usually at the hand of either Kiba or Ino, who was usually accompanied with Sakura, a pink haired girl that they both had a love-hate relationship with. Either outright ganging up on him, or choosing to instead give him the cold shoulder, either way, the experience's left Naruto feeling hurt.

Being the only guy also meant that the certain academic privileges were excluded from him. One such was the fact there were no boys restrooms in the entire school, as it didn't seem budget friendly to have a whole bathroom just for one kid. Naruto still shuddered, remembering the day Kiba had decided to slip him some ex-lax, and he had had to hold it the whole rest of the day.

That had been _EXCRUSIATING. _

Coming out of his thoughts, Naruto almost moaned at his current predicament, on a very long list. You see, being Shinobi, the students in the classes generally become fairly close over time, spending hours in class, or outside exercising, building up a close bond with each other. As such, generally when a certain _time _rolled around, a time every woman experiences at some point, usually for about a week, it would occur at the same moment.

_'Oh no...' _Naruto's eyes widened as his nose twitched. A tiny particle of dust, barely big enough to see flew up his nose, which due to certain reasons (Wink-wink) was extremely sensitive, began to itch. _"Ooooooooooooh crap!!' _As Naruto's head reared back, and a small 'Choo!' echoed almost ominously through the class.

Iruka's chalk snapped loudly against the chalkboard, before her head slowly swiveled around, her expression unreadable.

"QUIET!" She shouted, chalk violently rebounding off Naruto's head as the entire class gave him a sharp glare. "G-gomen..." He mumbled, sitting up. Iruka growled, as Naruto reprimanded himself for not being 'quiet'. "That's it! Since you deem it so fit as to ignore my lectures with your fake sneezes Uzumaki, I'll just have to give you a detention, and a pop quiz for the class! Everyone in a single file!" Iruka snarled as the class grumbled and sent him looks of silent fury. Naruto slouched heavily in his chair, dreading the quiz.

"I want you to perform the Henge technique, of the third." She informed the student in front of her, Shino, a girl with a large mass of brown hair, glasses that hid her eyes, and an oversized winter coat. "Hai." She emotionlessly replied, her hands moving into the appropriate seal, a billow of smoke erupting from seemingly nowhere, a perfect replica of the Sandaime appeared where Shino had been standing a moment later.

Slowly, student-by-student, the line shortened, all of them passing. Naruto's nervousness was starting to become exceedingly uncomfortable for him, the hairs on his tail bristling with excitement. _'Okay, just think of what the Sandaime looks like. Old, wrinkly, has a wart on her cheek...Or does she? Or was that liver spots? No, definitely a wart. Liver spots? WART! LIVER SPOTS! AAARRRRGGGH!' _Naruto mentally screamed.

"Uzumaki." Iruka said impassively as he realized he was the only one left. Almost like he was on a stage of some sort, all there eyes were fixed expectantly on him. Naruto almost fainted right there.

"Okay, when you're ready." Naruto gulped. _'Alright, Here goes!' _His hands forming the seal, a puff of smoke exploded around him.

"Naruto...You fail." Iruka sighed at his lame attempt at the Hokage, whom looked far to animated to be human. Guffaw's of laughter echoed through the class as some of the more excitable students shrieked with humor, the less surprised simply giggling and the impassive just ignoring it all together.

Naruto's eyes looked downcast, his ears almost straight down, as he slumped in disappointment. "You really have to practice these things Naruto." Iruka admonished. "But I have been! Really, I spent three hours practicing last night! I even did it a couple of times!" Naruto defended, but one look, and he could tell Iruka didn't believe him.

A loud ringing went off as the end of school rolled around. None of them waited for Iruka to assign any homework, several of the less patient broke out through the windows, though most just exited through the door. The only two that remained were Naruto and Iruka.

"Well, for your detention..." Iruka thought out loud as Naruto's tail wagged a little with the hope he'd be left off. Iruka however grew an idea as she gazed out her window.

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"Can I please go now Iruka-sensei? I have some studying I wanted to get started with." Naruto quipped as he scrubbed the rock face of the third Hokage. "No, I want you to really get a sense of what the Sandaime looks like, and I figured you'd memorized it if you were to clean the monument. If you want to go home, then clean it up!" Iruka shouted down at him.

"Ooooohhhh!" Naruto groaned. He'd been meaning to have a wicked cram session tonight, but with the monument so large; it would probably take a night and a day to finish this. Scrubbing a small grubby spot, Naruto's despair towards the situation was ever growing.

Atop the monument, Iruka felt a little guilty. Normally she would have given him just some extra homework, or kept him after class, but she was really agitated right then. Her cramps were pretty bad, and she was in no mood for tomfoolery. Although they were starting to let up, and rational thought was returning.

Naruto's voice caught her attention however.

"What?" She asked, as Naruto's voice was a little to quiet to be heard. "Um, I asked, if um...Well..." Naruto faded off, choosing instead to scrub another spot. Iruka, becoming curious, grabbed a harness and rope, scaling down beside him. "Okay Naruto, what did you want to ask me."

Naruto's ears drooped down, which caught Iruka's attention. "Well, theres something I've been meaning to ask for a while, but, um, I've never really had an opportunity to ask you." Naruto said in a small voice, his head low as he continued to scrub. Iruka's eyebrows arched. _'A small crush maybe? I know I'm good-looking, but really, I never would have figured Naruto of all people-'_

"Do you hate me?"

The simple sentence sent Iruka back. "W-what?" Her voice hitched a little as Naruto fixed her with a stare that seemed to peer into her very soul. "I asked if you, well, if you hate me?" Iruka's eyes widened a little.

"No! What could possibly give you that idea?" Iruka asked, astonished at the intimacy of Naruto's question. "Well, I feel like you sometimes pick on only me. I'm always in detention, and get extra homework even though I try really hard to be good! And even if I do what you tells me to, I still fail at everything I try!" Naruto ended the last part with a small sob, Iruka's chest started growing a strained feeling.

"Naruto, I've never hated you, I'm just..." However, Iruka's train of thought stopped there. _'I'm just uncomfortable teaching the child that that thing is held inside.' _Iruka admitted to herself. She wasn't going to lie to herself. Naruto was not someone she particularly liked, but he wasn't someone she _hated _necessarily.

A sob caught her attention. "It's alright, you can say it. I know you need to say no because of your job. You can say it though, everyone else does as well." Iruka sighed as Naruto's eyes almost over-flowed with tears. "Naruto, I don't hate you. Sometimes I can be irritable, and you remind me a little of...Someone I once knew. You're very similar to him."

_'Although how he's similar to a 200 foot demon is still up for grabs.' _

"R-really?" Naruto asked, wiping his eyes. "Yes, and I'm sorry if I gave you that impression. Come on, I think you've cleaned enough, I'll treat you to something." Naruto's ears perked up immediately, his once depressed face over-flowing with happiness. "RAMEN?!" He asked excitedly.

"Maybe, but first lets get off this cliff." Naruto scaled half of it by the time she was done.

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"Mmmmmmm!" Naruto sighed as the smell of simmering broth filled his nostrils, the noodles and other ingredients in his miso-ramen making his mouth water. "Domo-arigatou Iruka-sensei! I'll pay you back later!" Naruto cheered. Iruka just giggled a little, her previous stomach pains subsiding for a short period. "Its alright Naruto, seriously, this is on me."

"Thank you for choosing Ichiraku ramen." Ayame, the shops patron, and daughter of Teuchi, the cook and owner, laughed, setting a large bowl in front of Naruto. Not wasting a moment, he dug into his first meal in two days. _'I really need a job or something, I can't stand how short on cash I am!' _

Iruka grinned at his enthusiasm, her own meal, a much smaller bowl, blowing steam upwards.

"Hey, um, Iruka-sensei?" Naruto quipped a little shyly. Swiveling her head, she gave a start as she realized his bowl was actually empty. "Can I ask you something else?" Iruka's eyebrow rose. "Oh, like what?"

"C-could I try on your forehead protector?" He asked, pointing towards it. Iruka grinned, holding the metal piece up with two fingers. "Oh? You mean this old thing?" Naruto nodded exuberantly, grinning brightly.

"No, sorry, can't do that." Iruka informed him, his face faulting. "Why not?" Naruto inquired, confused. Iruka grew a sage like look, adopting a speech as though she was explaining something. "Well, you have to earn yours. This hiate is proof that you've graduated and become a ninja. You want one, you have to earn it tomorrow." Naruto nodded. "Alright! Thanks for the bowls Iruka-sensei!" Naruto ran off.

"Well, he's in better spirits...But what did he mean by..?" Turning back to the table, Iruka's eye grew a twitch at the small pile of bowls set in front of her. "How...The hell..?" She could only ask herself as Teuchi and Ayame rubbed their hands together, anticipating the amount of money that would be have to be paid.

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Waking bright and early, Naruto rubbed his eyes sleepily as he grabbed his things. "This is it, this is the day I become a Ninja. After this, all my dreams will come true!" He pep-talked himself, using the mirror in the small bathroom. Grabbing his jumpsuit, throwing it on, Naruto trekked out into the streets, moving towards the academy doors.

The bustling class grew a little quieter as he came inside, sitting down at his usual desk, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up. Sniffing the air a little, Naruto's ears flattened. _'Oh crap...' _Slowly, Naruto swiveled his head around to look at the shaggy gray coat of Inuzuka Kiba, who grew a feral smile at the attention Naruto was giving her.

"Oi, the Dope actually showed up! Thought you would have choked!" Kiba pointed out. "Leave him alone Kiba, just because your nervous about passing the exam doesn't mean you should take it out on Naruto." A lazy drawl rose up beside Naruto. Kiba's smirk twisted to a frown as she realized who had spoken up.

"Stay out of this you lazy bum." Kiba informed Shikamaru, the pre-identified comatose pineapple with limbs from several years ago. Despite first impressions, Naruto and her had actually become good acquaintances, and when Shikamaru had the energy, she would occasionally stick up for the passive boy. That was of course if she chose to, Shikamaru barely had the energy to get dressed daily, simply walking around in a small fishnet shirt, black ninja pants and a gray vest with her clans symbol on the back.

"Screw off mutt." Shikmaru sighed. Kiba grew an exasperated look. "I'll have you know that I am a prime example of a lady!" Shikamaru's head rose up a little, fixing Kiba with an inquisitive, but groggy look, before setting her head back down. "If you're a prime example of a lady, then I sincerely hope I'm straight."

A muffled laugh spoke up beside her as a girl that was as socially razed as Naruto chuckled. Flaming red-hair set in main of hair, long scarf and a strange set of clothes to match, Choji was probably the second least talked to girl in the school. Due to family reasons, Choji had the unfortunate need to be slightly above weight standards in the Shinobi world, leading many to label her "The over-weight chick". Despite this, Choji persevered, and had as of yet earned two friends, Naruto and Shikamaru.

"What the heck are you laughing at fatty?" Kiba shot at her. "Who you calling fatty, huh?!" Choji stood up, meeting Kiba's eyes with a flame twice as strong. "You!" Kiba shot back. "I'D RATHER BE A FATTY THEN SOME MANGY MUTT!" Choji shouted back, Kiba began to snarl.

"Enough!" A strict shout at the bottom of the classroom shouted. The entire class grew silent as Iruka snapped them all at attention, accompanied by two other teaching ninja. "The tests will be beginning soon, so please CALM DOWN!" the last part was mostly directed to Choji/Kiba, whom both reluctantly took there seats, leaving the now panicky Naruto to sit rigidly, trying to understand what just happened.

"I will call you all one at a time, where you will be evaluated for your skills. Would Akagi Aiko please come up?" A shout of "DAMMIT! Why do I always have to be first!" was heard before the very first person took the test.

Running through what he knew, Naruto prepared. _'Okay, there's a 1-3 chance I'll get Bunshin, so if your listening God, please, oh please, just let me pass this. This is the one thing I ask! I will never ask for anything else! Anything else I can handle!' _A nudge to his side drew him out of his musings. "Naruto, your next." Shikamaru pointed out, before sitting back down to sleep.

A cold sensation like his stomach dropping out spread through Naruto's entire body. "Uzumaki Naruto." Was heard, although Naruto didn't respond, still stuck to his chair with the cold feeling.

"Would Uzumaki Naruto please come up?!" This time the proctor spoke louder. Twisting herself out of the daze, Naruto quickly trotted down the steps to meet the proctor, whom muttered an almost silent "Stupid little wretch." Under her breath.

The exam room was bigger then he had expected. And more open. Flat wooden floors, with a single desk where Iruka, another teacher, and Mizuki, who usually substituted with Iruka on some days, sat. Mizuki gave Naruto bad vibes, although she was very nice. She never even gave him detention once!

"Alright Naruto, this is it. You practiced right?" Naruto nodded, tensing a little. _"Please not Bunshin, please not Bunshin...' _Naruto's mantra became a torrent of hope, his tail wagging hopefully yet again.

"Naruto, please... the Bunshin technique." Naruto's tail flopped to the ground as his entire body sagged energy less.

"Please perform when you're ready." Iruka pointed. _'I could already tell that this is what the elder's would pick for him, they have his records, and they know how bad he is with Bunshin. Old codgers...' _

"A-alright." _'Its okay, I've practiced this. Maybe God is setting me up for a real win here!' _Setting into the stance, Naruto readied the correct hand seal.

The proctor's fell silent as Naruto drew upon his chakra, his one of a kind chakra. Like whisps of fire, it exploded around him, crimson in color. _'Okay, just like I practiced, just concentrate on what you look like...think about the details...Mold the chakra correctly, and apply it!' _Naruto went through the memorized steps and, with a great pop beside him, the clone appeared.

"Naruto...You fail I'm afraid." Iruka sighed sadly, eyeing the three very dead looking clones on the ground, their appearance that of Naruto, only colorless and animated. Naruto's face screwed up in a look of pure sadness, tears threatening to overflow.

"Now hold on Iruka, he did create three Bunshin, if very poor ones." Mizuki spoke up. Naruto's hope grew to a small flame at the silver-haired woman's words, only to be dashed a moment later. "No Mizuki, this was a test, and he failed. It is sad, but it is final." Naruto's tears flowed unabashed as he tore out of the room, wanting to be anywhere other then there.

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The chirp of birds, and the laugh of children who had passed the test did nothing to improve his mood. He felt it, sitting on the swing under the tree, cold, chilling failure, like the icy grip of death. He'd failed, no if and or buts, just like all of them had said he would.

Lifting a tired, weepy eye towards the crowd of bustling, proud children coming out of the academy, he could only feel ever more sad. Kiba, marching proud as a queen, held her hiate up to her mother's watchful eye, who gave her a congratulate pat. If that didn't hurt the small orphan enough, Kiba pointed towards him, and from what he could make out of with lip-reading, informed his mother of his failure.

She grew an even wider smile, taking Kiba's hand and walking off.

"Must be nice huh?" The voice of Mizuki startled him, her ninja training allowing her to slip inside his area. "Ya." Naruto mumbled.

"Hey-hey! Don't like that! It's okay, I failed my first exam to!" She told him. Naruto's mood didn't increase. "You must have been pretty brave, I don't think I could stand another year in that class!" Naruto almost broke out crying again.

"I would have to, if I didn't know the secret method of passing..." Mizuki trailed off, although Naruto was already hanging on every word.

"Secret way to pass?!" He gained a new light, his spirit regaining itself. "Oh crap, can't believe I mentioned that! Not allowed to!" Mizuki smacked her forehead, making Naruto's curiosity grow. "Please Mizuki-sensei…Mizuki-hime! Please! I need to pass the exams, could you tell me how? I really want to be a Shinobi!" Mizuki grew a both conflicted and thoughtful pose.

"Well, alright, but only because I like you!" Poking Naruto's nose playfully, Mizuki inched down and explained things to him. "There's a special scroll hidden in the Hokage tower, a scroll that if you can take and learn one technique from, you automatically pass the exam. Originally that's how you passed the old exams, but it was viewed to hard, the fail rate was to high!" Naruto's eyes grew wide.

"I have to steal a scroll?" Mizuki nodded. "Ya, tonight. Take it to the woods and keep it there until I show up, otherwise you fail this too, and are thus doomed to retake the year!" Naruto grew a determined look. "Alright Mizuki-sensei! I'll do it, for you and Iruka-sensei!" Tearing off with his tail swishing behind him, Naruto never saw the wide smirk that now adorned Mizuki's feminine features.

_'All to easy...' _

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"Okay, this is it. This is how I I'm going to become a Shinobi!" About an hour later, and some formulating, Naruto had come up with the ultimate way to acquire the scroll. A plan even he had to admit was both devious and ingenious.

"Excuse me, but I need to borrow a scroll." His head just peeking over the reception desk of the village historian's, giving the bookish receptionist a pair of puppy-dog eyes that would melt a glacier with cuteness. Naruto knew her pretty well, she wasn't the nicest person, but she was definitely one thing, always busy. Because it was her job to file, and record almost every information file, and by extension scroll in the monument.

"Oh, Naruto! Hi! Sorry, but could you please come back, I'm pretty busy today, there have been several new scrolls that have to be put together, and I have to arrange some land-claims." The bifocal clerk said from the back of the spacious room. Drawers stockpiled with files, books and the various scroll ranging from the size of a fist to as large as a man lying here and there.

"Oh, please can I! I need it right away, and if I don't get it soon, Mizuki-sensei will be upset!" Clerk-san's head poked up a little as she shuffled a few files around. "I know, I know, but I just don't have time to find the scroll for you Naruto! There's just to much to do!" Naruto's ears perched down a little, before poking right back up as a smile adorned his face.

"It's alright, I know what it looks like, and I can find it!" He said with a beaming smile. Clerk stopped for a moment, before sighing. "Fine then, go and have a look, just don't take anything you shouldn't, alright?" Naruto flashed her a foxy grin, nodding quickly. "And don't interrupt my work, alright?" Naruto nodded again, moving behind the desk to study the shelves.

Now it only left the problem of what the scroll looked like. Despite telling Clerk-san that he knew what it looked like, Naruto could feel a tight feeling welling up in his stomach at the thought of lying to her, although he quelled it soon.

_'This is for Iruka-sensei!' _Nodding to himself, Naruto searched almost every shelf in the room, although none of them looked like a scroll that contained a massive store of crazy powerful Jutsu. Just records and of the like.

_'Maybe its by her desk or something...' _Trekking over, while still not drawing the clerk's attention, Naruto searched around it, but only found a small pile of books with a red cover and a large 'NOT FOR CHILDREN' printed on them, titled _'Icha Icha'. _ Putting this in the back of his mind, Naruto continued to search.

Half an hour of fruitless looking, and Naruto could barely stand it. Clerk-san just continued to file things in the corner, never stopping and barely paying attention to him, which he was thankful for. Then, something caught Naruto's attention.

Running over to beside a shelf, Naruto found a small pile of scrolls, a particularly large one with red sides on it catching Naruto's attention. Grabbing it and slowly unrolling it, Naruto gazed at what appeared to be a written formula for a technique. _'JACKPOT!' _He giggled to himself; he'd actually found it!

"Okay, I found it Clerk-san! Domo-arigatou!" Naruto said, not wasting a moment. Clerk just raised her hand, giving a wave. _'Thought he would never leave! Now I can stop pretending to sort things and get back to reading!' _A small stream of blood rolled down her nose at the thought, she was at a particularly 'interesting' part in the novel, and couldn't wait to get-

Her heart almost stopped as she realized it was gone. "Where is it?! It has to be here!" Pulling scrolls and books aside, Clerk-san had to sit down for a moment as she realized it was gone, the secret scroll.

_'Who could have taken it?! The only person other then me that's stopped by today...Is...Naruto!' _Her head spinning, Clerk-san took off in a spring, intent on informing the Hokage immediately.

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"YES!" Naruto cheered to himself as he stopped in a clearing, a small woodshed off to the side. About fifteen minutes of running, and he had stopped to engage in the second part of the secret test, learning a secret technique from the scroll. Once he achieved this, he'd be a full-fledged ninja!

"Okaaay, lets see, what should I learn..." Naruto talked to himself, opening the scroll and beginning to read its contents. "No, to icky... No, don't have the body parts for that one...No, I don't even want to think about how you'd apply that...WHOA! OKAY! AVOID THAT ONE!" Naruto had to physically look away from that one. It was disgusting! SO GROOOSSSSSS!

"There has to be at least one technique that isn't horrifying!" Naruto sighed mournfully to himself, giving the scroll a tap. This small movement, coupled with the slight curve of the field caused the scroll to unroll a little, and a single sentence caught Naruto's attention.

"Kage...Bunshin?" Eyeing the technique closely, Naruto both sighed and mourned simultaneously. Like it illustrated, the technique was a clone skill, although it created physical clones, not mere illusions. Naruto clicked his tongue, just trying to imagine how hard it would be to learn this move. "Well, I did need to pass the Bunshin exam, and this isn't gross like the others..." Kneeling over, Naruto began to study, before something else caught his eye.

"Whoa, what's this over here?" Moving the scroll over, Naruto gave the technique far more attention then Kage-Bunshin. What had caught his attention were the words "Kage, "Bunshin" and "Variants".

"Seisoku Chakra technique: Variants of the Kage Bunshin." Naruto read aloud, his eyes transfixed at the technique's explanation. "Seisoku Chakra, A-S rank technique, requires Kage level chakra reserves to perform, very dangerous. The user molds their own chakra into various shapes, the seal stabilizing them, and allowing continued manipulation and use of chakra." Naruto sort of understood it, but the small diagram explained it better.

The image was first of someone molding chakra with a seal Naruto had never seen before, followed by a second image of an ethereal hand of blue chakra extending off them. Looking back at the words, Naruto continued to read. "Can also be used to create variants Kage-Bunshins, in that instead of being small, flinsy clones, these clones are comprised of a thick outer shell of chakra that can be molded to look like the user. These clones can also be manipulated, and can take multiple hits before being dispelled, unless mortal wound is inflicted."

Sitting on his rump, Naruto's head span at taking that in.

A technique more powerful then the shadow-clone skill, that would be awesome! He'd pass the test for sure! Sure, some of the stuff they had mentioned, particularly "Kage level chakra required" Confused him, but he knew enough to figure out how to use the technique. Standing tall and placing his hands in the correct seal, Naruto drew upon his reserves, and attempted the technique...

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Iruka was worried. No, worried was half an hour ago, she was beyond that. Not an hour ago the call had gone up, Naruto was to be hunted down for high treason against the village. Sarutobi herself had given the order, though many had just asked for his outright execution on the spot. Iruka was still relieved that it hadn't come to that, although that was in the past.

An hour of searching the forests had come up fruitless; the village had already been scoured. Several teams had already given up, stating quite loudly "The damn demon was probably a hundred miles away with the scroll."

Iruka wasn't about to let that happen. Maybe she was driven by guilt at the thought of pushing Naruto to the point where he would resort to stealing, failing him in the exam, or maybe it was grim determination, at the thought of saving the scroll, but whatever it was, Iruka wouldn't, couldn't let Naruto escape.

Stopping on a tree branch, the night sky casting twisted shadows of the trunks, Iruka stopped for breath. He had to be here somewhere, but where? Naruto wasn't someone that did things like this, he was, well, _docile! _Never spoke up, caused trouble, or even got in the way! And yet he would steal a forbidden scroll?! Was the Naruto she knew the entire time just an illusion? Who was the real Naruto then?

Iruka turned to stay off, before a jolt went through her like a bolt of lightning. Stopping herself, she turned as a massive torrent of chakra overwhelmed her senses. From its feel, there was only one person that had chakra like this.

_'Naruto...'_

Not wasting a moment, Iruka tore off; her legs carrying her suddenly exhausted body. _'Please, please be him!' _Became a mantra in her head as she landed in a small grove, a wooden shed with several logs stacked beside it being the only real change in the usual forest scenery.

"NARUTO!" Iruka gave a cry as she caught the small fox boy, laying sprawled on the ground, his mouth open, his tongue lolling out. _'Please don't be..!' _Iruka hesitantly tiptoed towards him, not daring to take a breath. A massive sigh of relief spewed from her lips as she realized he was in fact breathing, if shallowly.

"NARUTO! PAY ATTENTION!" Iruka's screech riled him immediately, taking a defensive stance on instinct. Looking around panicky, not really identifying where he was, Naruto slowly swiveled his head, looking at the questioning gaze of his elder teacher. Silence hung thick in the air, accompanied with its very good friend awkward.

In the back, a soft _'cricket-cricket' _was heard.

"Well, did I pass?" Naruto asked, giving Iruka a look that crossed between apprehensive and ecstatic. Iruka however was in the dark. "What do you mean, did I pass? Forget that, why do you have that scroll?!" Iruka said, pointing towards the pre mentioned log worth of paper. "You mean the secret test scroll?" Naruto wagged his tail, his ears perked up.

"The what?" Iruka gave Naruto a look that oozed confusion, to the point where Naruto's ears flattened to his head, thinking he'd said something wrong. "The scroll for the test..." Naruto petered off. Iruka raised an eyebrow, still confused. It was almost like Naruto thought this was like an assignment or-

A movement to the left was the only sign that Iruka had before a barrage of pointed objects rammed into the ground where she had been standing moments before. Looking up shock, Iruka could make out easily in the darkness that silver hair anywhere.

Mizuki.

"NARUTO! The scroll, give it here! Iruka showing up is also part of the test, she's just trying to throw you off! Give me the scroll!" Mizuki called from the treetops, her shock of blue-silver hair contrasting slightly against the green flack vest that was standard to Chuunin. On her back, just barely able to make out against the inky blackness, were two massive shuriken pinned to her.

Naruto's head looked quickly between Iruka, his long standing, temperamental teacher, and Mizuki, the teacher that he truthfully didn't know that well, but had never shown an ounce of anger against him. "I...I don't know..." He mumbled confusedly to himself as Iruka looked widely at Mizuki.

"THIS! This is your doing! What do you think your doing Mizuki?!" Iruka howled at the woman, who just smirked. "Administering the test, remember?" Her voice was a cold purr, like the sound an animal makes as it plays with its next meal. "Test? What test?! What are you really up to Mizuki?"

Mizuki however was in no mood to talk, sending another kunai into the soft ground where Iruka had been standing, the woman leapt beside the wood shed just in the knick of time. "Hurry Naruto, the scroll! You want to pass the test, right?" Iruka's eyes widened in astonishment as she finally pieced it together.

"YOU! Naruto, don't give it to Mizuki! Bring it here!" Naruto looked between the two, clutching the scroll close, hiding partially behind it, trying to make sense of just what was going on around him. "It's a trick! Don't fall for it Naruto! Give me the scroll, and pass!" Mizuki sang, trying to will Naruto to do what she wished.

"NO! Don't do it Naruto! Its a trick, Mizuki's stealing the scroll, and if you give it to her, you'll be blamed for its theft and killed!" Naruto's eyes became wide saucer's, clutching the scroll closer. "That's a lie! Give it to me!" Mizuki shouted.

"To me Naruto!"

"She's a thief, don't believe her! Give it to me!"

"NO! To me!"

"TO ME!"

"NO, ME!"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Naruto shouted in exasperation, still clutching the scroll tightly. Both Chuunin grew silent at his outburst, clenching his eyes shut, along with his ears, trying to shut them out. Mizuki however, was the first to recover.

"Che! Fine then, I wanted to do this nice and clean, but I guess there's no way around it!" Reaching behind herself, Mizuki wrenched one of the shuriken out, hurling at the small boy. Naruto, exhausted, scared and caught off guard, froze instinctively on the ground, the scroll still clutched in front of him.

_'NARUTO!' _Iruka's mind reeled as her body reacted on instinct, completely against her will.

There was a dull 'thunk', a flash of blood, and quiet. Cracking on eye open, Naruto's irises shrank to the size of a pin in realization.

Iruka had jumped in its path. In her back, wedged directly in the swirl in the middle of her vest, was the shuriken's point, narrowly missing Iruka's spine. Naruto's entire mind was at a blank, why her, of all people, why would she do this? And for him, why him?

"W-why?" Was the only thing Naruto could speak, Iruka's face turning into a grim smile. "Because you are precious to me Naruto. That is why." Naruto's eyes widened, a thin trickle of a tear escaping from his lower lid. "Run, before she attacks, run to the village and get help, before anything goes wrong."

"How touching." Iruka's once kind smile turned to a snarl as Mizuki's voice carried over the trees. "Lying to him to get what you want, I must say, that is a surprise. Never figured you had the guts to do something like that. 'Because your precious to me' HA!" Mizuki scoffed, her once fairly plain, but still striking features twisting into a mask of ugly hatred.

"Mizuki." Iruka simply whispered in response. Mizuki however responded indifferently. "You really shouldn't lie like that, especially considering the fact you hate him the most out of everyone in the entire village!" Naruto gave Iruka a disbelieving look, who returned a look that tried to dissuade him of this.

Hopping down from her high perch in the trees, Mizuki strutted over in a lazy swagger, as Iruka yanked the Fuuma-shuriken out of her back. "Yes, its true, despite Iruka denying it. She hates you Naruto, just like everyone else, including me!" Naruto shook his head, his tears threatening to spill over. "W-what are you talking about?" Mizuki's evil smirk turned into a snarl.

"You see Naruto, you may or may not know it, but your a murderer-" Naruto's eyes seemed to suck in all life as Mizuki stopped a few paces away. "-You in fact killed Iruka's parents, along with hundreds of thousands of other people, for no reason. Why you may ask? Because-"

"Don't you dare tell him Mizuki!" Iruka's strained voice spoke up. "You know the law! Don't you dare tell him or I'll-!" Mizuki flashed Iruka a grin.

"NARUTO, YOU ARE THE KYUUBI!"

Naruto's entire world stopped. It was like nothing was moving; everything around him had stopped existing. The only thing that existed was this information, almost corporeal in its essence. "K-kyuubi...?" Naruto's voice came out strained as Mizuki sneered, Iruka cursing her to no end.

"Yes, you are the demon fox, Kyuubi-no-Yoko. On the day you were born, the Kyuubi attacked the village, leaving nothing but devastation. The Yondaime Hokage, in an act of desperation, sealed it into a child, in an attempt to save this pathetic village. That child was you." Naruto's eyes wept openly now, as he slowly backed away, this truth shattering his very core.

_'This...This explains everything! All the hatred, the way everyone treats me! I...I'm a monster!' _Naruto's body quaked, his head pitching forwards as he coughed up bile. Mizuki smirked evilly as Iruka gave a horrified stare at him.

"You know, I should feel sorry for you." Mizuki's voice caught Naruto's weeping attention, his ears perking a little at her tone. "You must have lived a life of many hardships, living in a village where everyone hates you, where you will never be loved, acknowledged or respected." Mizuki's face however twisted into the same sick grin.

"But no, I just find you pathetic!" Her words cut deep into the wounded Naruto's heart, the woman whom he though had liked him, scorning him like this, on top of learning such a truth, he felt like just dying there. Mizuki however wasn't in the mood for sparing him. "You have all this power, at your finger-tips, and yet, you never used it. Never got back at anyone, you can't even use it now to defend yourself, you just sit on the ground, sniveling like some wounded child, expecting someone to help you. HA! PATHETIC!" Naruto flinched, that one had hurt the most.

"That's enough Mizuki!" Iruka spoke up. Mizuki's snarl returning. "Not only have you attempted high treason in two counts today, but you have also hurt my student as well! For this, I cannot let you escape!" Iruka began to spin the shuriken around, threateningly twirling it over her head. Mizuki scoffed. "You could never beat me when we were kids, what makes you think you can beat me now?" Iruka turned to Naruto, who still looked upset, though a little better. "Naruto, take the scroll and run, run like nothing before. Get help where ever you can, and don't let Mizuki catch you!" Naruto just gave her a blank look, muttering "Sensei." Under his breath. "Oh just go die already!" Mizuki thrashed out, hurling a volley of shuriken at Iruka, whom blocked with the shuriken, standing in Mizuki's way.

"NARUTO! GO!" Snapping the still stunned boy out of his shock, Naruto instantly took off in a run, his bright orange tail flashing in the darkness. "Ne, you are going to be a problem for me, aren't you Iruka?" Mizuki scoffed, reaching behind and pulling away her second fuuma shuriken. Iruka responded with cold silence.

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_'DAMMIT!' _Cursing himself, Naruto careened through the treetops, doing as Iruka had instructed, poorly.

He was lost, lost in the dark forests, where the only light was from the moon. The scroll he carried was beginning to wane on his back; its heavy weight slowing him down, not that he cared at this point. His mind was a blur of thought, spinning from _'I have the Kyuubi inside of me?' _to _'Where is the village, I can't find the village!' _

Stopping on a branch and sighing, a sudden sadness weld up inside Naruto, he barely restrained himself from bursting into tears. _'S-she's right. Mizuki's right, I am a coward and a crybaby! I have to get a hold of myself. This is for Iruka-sensei! I have to go on, if I don't, Mizuki might..!' _His thoughts reinforced, Naruto placed the scroll back on himself, turning to fly to the next tree, when a noise caught his attention.

A clang of metal on metal. Curiosity overcoming him, Naruto traversed the foliage, coming to a stop to a clearing.

A flash of orange caught his attention, and peering down, his eyes widened to obscene proportions as what appeared to be _himself _run accross the clearing on all fours, the forbidden scroll strapped to his back. Shaking his head to ensure he wasn't dreaming, Naruto confirmed that, yes, he was in fact awake.

"This night just gets worse and worse." He moaned to himself.

The 'him' below stopped for a moment, peering around, as though he were looking for something. Naruto caught a sudden tension in the other-him's muscles, before a kunai slammed into the other-him's shoulder, pinning him to a tree trunk. From across said clearing, a silvery-blue mass of hair, accompanied by a sickeningly familiar person made Naruto panic right there.

_'MIZUKI!' _

Her voice, a high cackle, rang over the treetops, sounding the forest. "Finally caught you, you stupid Yoko!" Naruto looked complexed at the other-him, who was trying vainly to wrench the kunai from the tree. "Man your stupid! Running around the forest like that! Didn't you learn anything that we taught you at the school?"

Other-him however just smirked, before the voice of someone whom Naruto hadn't expected filled the clearing. "Maybe you should have paid attention to Mizuki!" Other-him burst into smoke, revealing the brown skinned Chuunin underneath the Henge. Mizuki's face twisted back to a snarl, her features not affecting Iruka in the least.

"Why are you prolonging things Iruka. I know you, you hate the Kyuubi more then I ever could. And yet here you are, protecting it! Help me, and we can end this creatures life!" Mizuki grew a crazed look, her snarl twisting again into an insane smile.

Quiet was met with this, before Iruka spoke up. "Your right." Naruto's heart clenched horribly, this fact-sinking in. "I do hate the kyuubi, for all the horrible, evil things it's done." Mizuki laughed. _'What a fool, thinking I'd honestly ask for her he-'_

"But Naruto isn't the Kyuubi." Mizuki faltered, Naruto's ears perking up at this. _'I'm...Not...?'_

"Naruto was never the Kyuubi. Sure, I see a part of it in him, but there is so much more to Naruto then that! He's kind, almost to kind, plus he's loyal, and a hard-worker. Something you'd never understand Mizuki. I stand by it, I do hate the Kyuubi, but I don't hate Naruto. He is to precious to me to hate." This did not sate Mizuki at all. _'DAMMIT! WHAT ELSE COULD GO WRONG WITH TONIGHT?!' _"FINE THEN! You want to die with that accursed brat so much?! Here, take this and DIE!" Whipping the shuriken around, Mizuki prepared to let it ripping into Iruka's gut.

"STOP!"

Time faltered in that instant as Mizuki stared incredulously at the canopy. "So the brats dumber then even I pegged him for!" She laughed as Naruto stepped around the trunk of the tree. "I said stop!" Iruka stared dumbly at him, trying to figure out just what he was thinking. "NARUTO! I told you, run from here, get help!"

"I'm not going to leave you Iruka-sensei! Your precious to me as well!" Iruka's was taken aback. Had she heard him?

"Come on down gaki! You're just prolonging your inevitable death!" Mizuki cackled, Naruto fixing her with an almost murderous look. "If you hurt Iruka-sensei, if you even lay one hair on her head, I'LL KICK YOUR ASS!" Naruto's ears flattened to his head, his tail becoming large and bushy. Iruka, for the second time, was shocked; she'd never seen him like this.

"Big words from a mongrel like you! Come on, give it your best shot, I'll just kill you, kill Iruka, then take the scroll!" Hefting the shuriken, Mizuki waited for him to move. "Take this!" Mizuki howled, the fuuma shuriken cut the air around it as it sped towards Naruto's vitals. Her attempt on his life was halted however, when his tail wrapped the large loop in its center, halting its spin.

Naruto's hands flew into the dragon seal, a massive amount of chakra blasted around him, like an ethereal mist, blood red, surrounding the canopy. Iruka physically paled at the sheer amount, while Mizuki almost stopped breathing.

**"SEISOKU: BUNSHIN!" **The mist of chakra bent and twisted, before one by one, clones appeared from its mass, each a perfect duplicate of Naruto, all of them carrying a scroll and shuriken. The now surrounded traitor gulped painfully, mortified at Naruto's increased numbers.

"This is for causing me so much trouble!" His voice echoed through the hollow, as the thousand Naruto's leapt high into the air, all-converging on Mizuki's location, who gave a terrified shriek.

**"BELIEVE IT!"**

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"..."

"..."

"..."

"...I think you overdid it." Iruka sighed, as the heavily battered and bruised Chuunin, Mizuki, lay on the ground, a crumpled mess. Standing nervously behind her, tapping his fingers together, Naruto blushed. "Y-ya..."

Silence.

"Sooo...What was that weird move you did on Mizuki anyways? The one, you know..?" Naruto's blushed increased. "That was a little something else I-uh, picked up from the scroll. Was I not allowed to use it?" Iruka shook her head, Naruto's embarrassed posture relaxed a little.

Picking Mizuki up and carrying her like a sack of potatoes, before beginning to trek towards the village, Naruto straggling beside her. The quiet didn't last however, as Naruto spoke up.

"Neh, Iruka-sensei?" Turning, Iruka fixed him with a quizzical look. "Yes Naruto, what is it?" Naruto blushed again, Iruka giggling a little. "We-well, I was wondering, is all that stuff you said, about me being a-a precious person to you, was that true?" Iruka gave him a blank look, before smiling. "Yes Naruto, it was all true, I love you." Naruto's reaction to her words however took her aback. He cried. "I-I-I-IRUKA-SENSEI!!!" Tackling her to the ground, Mizuki was thrown to the side as Iruka tried vainly to pry off the weeping boy. _'God damn this kid is emotional!' _Iruka sighed, exasperated. _'But, he is cute in another way.'_ Iruka smiled, patting his head softly as he continued to sob.

A few moments later, Naruto sat back, rubbing his eyes. "You going to be okay now?" Iruka asked, Naruto nodding while whipping the last of a tear. "Y-ya, I just...That's the first time anyone's ever said that to me." Naruto mumbled, though Iruka managed to catch it.

"I...See..." There was quiet, before Iruka gave a large sigh. "Naruto, there's something I want to give you." Naruto's ears perked, twitching slightly as he gave Iruka a wide, almost pleading look. "W-what?" Iruka gave him a sly look. "Close your eyes, and I'll show you." Naruto gave her a suspicious eye, but obeyed.

Moments later, his eyes shot wide open as something wet and soft met the middle of his forhead. Cracking an eye open, he looked up to see Iruka stand back, her lips in a puckered shape. "That's for good luck. And this-" She reached the top of her head, untying her head-band. "-Is for being an excellent ninja, and Genin."

Naruto stared, fascinated as Iruka gently wrapped the hiate around his head. Tapping the metal playfully, Naruto couldn't help but beam. HE WAS A NINJA!

"YAATTTAAA!" He cried, tackling Iruka the second time that day to the ground. "Hey-hey, don't start this again!" Iruka playfully nudged him as he again was overcome with tears.

_'Yep, one emotional kid.' _

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**There. Thats it, the story is now truly rolling. **

**I can understand some may find my portrayal of Naruto as being 'cry-baby'-ish, but I felt that I wanted to deviate from traditional foxy-fied Naruto fics. Its funnier instead of him reacting cool and calculating in uncomfortable situations to panic, blush, and become fairly embarrassed.**

**Naruto's abilities will be explained next chapter, although here I will answer a few questions: **

**1.Naruto truthfully has no chakra. He instead completely relies on the Kyuubi's, and always has at least a third of a tail in his unused chakra circulatory system. Normal men in this story do have C.C.S.'s as well, but there's don't produce any more chakra then enough to live. **

**2. Seisoku chakra, is a move that will primarily Naruto's trademark, but clones will be how he uses them the most. Curious as to what other abilities it grants? Well, you'll just have to wait.**

**Finally, I'm sorry if towards the end it felt a little off. Kinda had writer's block when I was doing that part, but I knew I wanted the second chapter out soon. So there.**

**So to my fans...**

**Please, be charitable, review. Or else I will dismantle your answering machine (If you own one) AND WAIT FOR TELE-MARKETING TO DESTROY YOU! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Wow. I am one evil dude. Seriously, I could go into, like, world domination and shit! I'm already crazy, all I need is a gimmick, like 'BECAUSE NO ONE REVIEWED MY FANFICS, I SLOWLY PROGRESSED INTO INSANITY, LEADING TO THE INVENTION OF MY ULTIMATE DOOMSDAY WEAPON: THE FANFICTIONATOR! IT CAUSES ONLY THE LAMEST OF FANFICS TO COME TO LIFE, TO WREAK HAVOC! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!' Awe ya, I gots me a career!**


	3. Meeting Sensei

**YOUR MOM!!**

**And now that I have your attention...**

**Well, its official. I'm continuing this. At the moment the populace hasn't taken quite the interest I had hoped they had in this story, but hey, it took a while for people to notice cutting strings to. **

**A lesson to you all: Fame doesn't just happen; you gotta make it happen, even if you fail the first hundred times. And that's only if you want it.**

**Ya...I'm feeling particularly righteous right now, probably because of all the coffee beans I just ate. THE VOICES! ARE TELLING ME! TO STOP ENJOYING THE WONDERFUL BEEEAANS! BUT I CAN'T, I NEED MY DRUGS! MY WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL BEAN-DRUGS!**

_**Smack**_** "Snap out of it and get to the point! AND STOP EATTING DELICIOUS DRUG BEANS!"**

**Stupid voices, didn't have to hit so hard...**

**Anywho… aside from psychotic breakdowns, people are still apprehensive about how I'll represent certain characters in the story (COUGHZABUZACOUGH) well don't worry about it. I have enough to worry about as it is. Just let me handle it, and hang on for the ride.**

**P.S. A few people got weirded out when I had Naruto say 'Believe it'. My sincerest apologizes, I meant "DATTEBAYO!" Which although means the exact same thing is completely different. Freakin' pickish fans...Uh, I mean...**

**READ!**

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'BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!'

"Gwaaahgh." Cracking an eye open, Naruto sent a positively evil glare, by his standards, towards his alarm clock. This however had no effect, as it continued to BEEP very loudly. Rolling over and covering his head, Naruto grumbled loudly, smacking the alarm with his tail. Again, this had only the effect of knocking it to the floor, and somehow increasing the volume.

Muttering obscenities towards the small time-keeping machine, Naruto clicked the button and set a bleary eye on the time. "Ooohhh..." Sitting up, Naruto grabbed his cloths and headed for the washroom. A quick rinse, and out stepped a clean and a little more awake Jinchurriki, both his hair and fur went and soapy. Drying off unfortunately had the after effect of well...

Outright POOFING his fir up, making his tail and ears look like earmuffs and a fuzzy ball respectively. Forcing the fur down with a quick combing, Naruto put his cloths on and headed to the kitchen. Rummaging through the cupboards, Naruto found the only food in the house, a cup of instant ramen. Setting it in the microwave and turned it on, setting a timer to the side for three minutes, as the microwave was broken and didn't stop cooking until the door was opened.

With three minutes to himself where he wasn't blearily unawake, Naruto began to think about the day. Since waking up, there was something, something in the back of his head he should remember. Something important, but he just couldn't recall. Looking over at a desk by his bed, Naruto's eyes widened slowly in surprise.

Sitting on the desk by his bed was something that Naruto thought he'd never see in his room. A Konoha headband. Walking in almost a trance, he lifted it to his eyes to see if he wasn't hallucinating.

Nope, it was real.

"When...Did I..." The memories came flooding back like a torrent of water.

_"That's for good luck, and this-"_

_"-This is for being an excellent ninja, and Genin."_

"THE ACADEMY! KUSOOOO!" In a flash, he remembered he'd needed to be at the academy fifteen-minute's ago, for the assigning of the teams. Taking off in a run, Naruto snatched the Hiate on the way out, slamming the door.

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"HEY, WATCH IT KID!"

"GOMEN-NASAI!" Running by a vendor, Naruto's legs hurt like hell from the run. Normally something like this didn't hurt, but after last nights fiasco, as well as waking up early still, and only having half an hour to wake up, Naruto was in no state to be running.

That however, was not going to stop him, as he sifted through the already bustling streets, trying to find his way around. Cutting through an alleyway and jumping over several garbage cans, Naruto somersaulted over a few trash bins, and then sprang up a chain-link fence. Breaking through the other side of the alley, Naruto spotted the park he had cut through a long time ago.

Heading across it, Naruto went down another street, by several people, all of which sent rather ugly looks at him. This however didn't faze him; he had better things to worry about. Like getting to the academy before he missed his chance to become a ninja.

Turning an all to familiar corner, Naruto spotted the large building that was the school academy, the small swing and tree beside it the thing that really made Naruto remember it. Running into the doors and down hall, up two flights of stairs, and down another hall, Naruto slammed the door open.

"Gomen for being late!" Iruka's head swiveled in surprise at the small bundle of orange, blonde and whiskers that was Uzumaki Naruto. "Umm, okay then...Please take your seat Naruto." Breathing heavily, Naruto gladly took his seat, but was met with some resistance.

"Oi, dead-last, what are you doing here?" KIba spoke up from a seat not to far from his. Iruka however beaned her in the head, eliciting a cry from Kiba. "As I was saying before I was 'interrupted'-" Everyone sent Naruto a look, which shriveled under their gaze "-You should all be proud of yourselves. You've made it this far, and the journey ahead will be a rough one. I wish you all the sincerest luck."

The small eruption of clapping from some of the more exuberant students that had passed was silenced however as Iruka raised her hand. "I'm not done quite yet-" Insert groan from half of the class "-There is the matter of the Jounins that will be assigned to you. The assigning will take place in a few hours, in the mean time, please stay on the school premises, and try not to disturb other classes."

With a quick salute, Iruka stepped out of the room, leaving them alone. Not second later, Kiba pounced.

"Alright, spill." Large beads of sweat ran down Naruto's neck as Kiba sent a scrutinizing look towards him. "I-I managed a make-up exam-" "LIAR! You probably broke into the storage room and took one of those headbands!" Kiba's shouts caught the attention of several people, mainly Ino and Sakura, whom were in a corner discussing in low whispers.

"Who's stealing headbands?" Ino said shrilly, waltzing over. "N-no one's stealing anything. I told you, I took a-" Kiba cut him off "And I told you your full of shit! Where did you really get it?" Cracking a knuckle, Kiba sent another intimidating look towards Naruto. "Naruto, seriously, stealing of all things? That's sad," Ino cut in.

"I said I didn't steal it! I proved to them I had ninja-skills." (Didn't know what else to call it) The three however weren't convinced. "Naruto, Naruto, poor niave Naruto. Why can't you be more cool…"

"Why can't you be more smart…" Sakura added to the side.

"Why can't you have skills like-"

"Why can't you be beautiful like-"

"-Wonderful, gorgeous flower, the raven-haired maiden-"

"SAAASSSUKKKEEE-CHAAAAAAAAAANNN!" Both girls gave a traditional fan-girl screech, opening wide arms to said girl, looking for some sort of response.

"Hn?" A terrific crash sounded as Ino and Sakura both face-faulted on the floor, as Sasuke turned her head (At this point, I think many people are either going "SUUUUURRREEEAAAAL!" Or just a simple "GRRROOOOSSS!").

"What do you want?" She sighed, though instead of waiting, she turned back to the window, completely disregarding everyone there. "Sasuke-chaaaaaaaannn! You will be mine!" Ino and Sakura shot up, both giving a bravado of strength, determination and the will of fire.

Frankly they scared the crap out of Naruto.

"T...That was weird." Kiba gave a sigh as a shout of "WHO'S GOING TO BE YOURS?!" Was heard before Ino/Sakura tackled each other, engaging in a small brawl. "Well, whatever. They'll kick you out of here anyways, once they realize that you shouldn't be here." Kiba gave a huff, sitting down beside him.

Sweat ran down Naruto's neck. He didn't like where this was going. He gave a start when Kiba addressed him "So...Who do you think will be on your team anyways?" Naruto's ears gave a flap in confusion, though Kiba gave a short nod, signaling that yes, she was talking to him. "I...I don't really know, who do you think your going to be assigned?"

Naruto almost ducked at the look Kiba suddenly got, a cross between a lecherous smile and a confident smirk. "Oh that's easy, I'm definitely going to get Hinata and Sasuke!"

Naruto gave a turn of his head. "Whys that?"

Kiba's smirk grew full blow lecherous at that point. "Well duh! Who else but me deserves to be paired with the two hottest women in the school?! I mean honestly, have you ever given Hinata's or Sasuke's buns a look? They're smokin'!" Naruto at that point grew a little uncomfortable.

"Oi, what do you mean by that, huh?"

Kiba's entire body froze as a lazy statement with a deadly edge spoke up from above. "O-oh, hey there Sasuke, I, uh, didn't see you there." Kiba grew a nervous tick, a large blush streaked across her face.

"I'll say it again, what did you just say about my ass?" Sasuke sent a nasty glare down at her.

"I, uh, I didn't say that. It was Naruto over here." Naruto's eyes widened several sizes as Sasuke turned her head towards him, sending an equally lethal look at him.

"N-no, I didn't say that, it was-" Kiba sent an equally cruel look at him, silencing that "-I meant, well, I did, but, uh, I meant it only in the most respectful manner, and I, uh-"

In the background, Sakura's and Ino's miniature brawl reached critical level, both of them rolling on the floor, before bumping sharply on backboard of the next row. The entire table shook, sending pencils, papers and other utensils sprawling to the ground, most importantly throwing Sasuke forwards as she'd been leaning far forwards to intensify her glare at Naruto.

_'What...Whats going on?' _Naruto took in three key things that were going on around him:

1)There was something soft and…puckerish pushing against his lips.

2)His head hurt because he'd fallen to the floor.

3)He was under something equally soft, warm and a bit heavy.

Sasuke had fallen off the table, and through some weird coincidence, landed on Naruto, locking lips just as they hit the ground.

Sasuke jumped back as though she'd been shocked with an electric rod, leaning rigidly against the backboard of the desk behind her. Naruto gave her a wide stare, his limbs not responding to what had just happened.

It was the voice overhead that snapped him out of his trance. "N...Naruto..." The crack of bone against bone was a sound Naruto knew all to well, the sound Sakura or Ino often made before pounding him.

That day, Naruto learned something important. Don't ever kiss the most popular girl in the school by accident, especially if she is loved by dozens of fanatical, violent girls. Fan-girls who all desperately bid for that kiss.

_'My first kiss...And I get beat up for it...' _Naruto groaned as he nursed his wounds, several sizable bumps on his head, a black eye and two broken ribs. _'Well, its not like this will hurt for long anyways.' _Naruto reassured himself as the room quieted down, several girls following after Sasuke as she went to wash her mouth out.

"You lucky son of a bitch!" Kiba half laughed, half growled. "Scoring a kiss with Sasuke-chan, I should kick your ass!" Grabbing Naruto in a headlock and shaking him violently, Naruto tried vainly escape the tight hold Kiba had on him, which was now making his face turn blue.

"P-please let go." He coughed out; his ribs hadn't finished healing yet. Kiba however didn't seem to hear, in fact, her grip tightened even more. It was at the point where he began struggling futile that Shikamaru butted in. "Oi, you woke me up. Let go of the guy before he dies of air-loss, or worse yet, you keep me awake."

"Whatever, _boy_." Kiba said exasperatedly, dropping Naruto on the floor like he was a rag-doll.

"You're still going on about that?" Shikamaru asked as Kiba sat ruffled in her chair.

"Yes, it just doesn't make sense to me, how your parents could possibly give you a boys name," she answered

Shikamaru sighed. "Fine, I'll explain it again. My parents named me before I was born, deciding on the name I currently use. So, a few months later, instead of the boy they've been expecting, they get a girl. Do they decide to change the name? No. That's why I have a boy's name. Now shut up, and let me be." A dull '_thunk'_ ended her explanation, she'd gone back to sleep.

"Che, whatever. I'm going, I can't stand the smell over here, smells to much like fox." Sending one last glare towards Naruto, she trudged off to somewhere else in the classroom, leaving an anxious Naruto. "I...I don't smell like fox. Do I? What does fox even smell like?" Raising his tail hesitantly to his nose, Naruto gave an experimental sniff, but found nothing out of the ordinary. He smelled normal.

"You'd best not bother with it Naruto, Kiba's a bitch, after all, she comes from a clan of dog-nin." Choji laughed out, munching lightly on a breakfast bagel. "You shouldn't take anything she says personally. She was the one that started the whole, 'I'm fat' thing, and I don't let it get to me." Choji smiled.

"Really?" Naruto asked his confidence rising slightly.

Choji nodded. "Here, have some chips, I always carry an extra-pack." Reaching into her nap-sack, Choji pulled out a small bag, handing them to Naruto, whom ravenously munched them down. "So, anyways, looking forwards to which Jounin you'll get as a teacher?"

Stopping his scarfing, Naruto gave her a quizzical look. "Me? I don't really know any Jounin. Why? You think you know who you got?"

Choji nodded. "Come to think of it, I don't know any Jounin myself. But I'm sure whoever we get will be diligent, hardworking, civilized members of the ninja world." The door to the classroom opened, and in walked Iruka.

"I have good news. The Jounin have arrived, and the assigning. Will-" And so, the assigning began. Students slowly began to file out, meeting there Jounin teachers, many of which looked...Terrifying in Naruto's opinion. Iruka's voice caught his attention however.

"Team seven: Uchiha Sasuke (I'm wondering, Sasuke's name is probably a guys, right? Well, lets pretend, for the sake of laziness, that Sasuke's name occurred the same way Shikimaru's, and the same for every guy ninja that's now a girl. Parents naming their kids before there born. So there)...Haruno Sakura-"

"Hell yes! TAKE THAT, YOU BLONDE BIMBO!" Ino sent her a death-glare, which only served to make Sakura smile wider. "And finally-"

_'Wow, I really hope I don't get assigned to that team' _Naruto thought to himself quickly.

"Uzumaki Naruto."

_'I...Really have to stop hoping for things to go my way.' _Naruto slammed his head repeatedly into the wood of his desk, his ears hanging so low the covered his eyes. Sakura gave a gagged look, her entire posture growing stiff and horrified. "Team 8:-" Iruka was suddenly cut off however.

"Now hold on a second! There's no way I'm being on the same team as that...THING!" Sakura shrieked loudly. Everyone grew shocked looks at her sudden outburst. "Th...Thing Sakura?" Iruka gave a surprised look at her.

"Yes, I refuse to be on the same team as a...Freak like him! I won't be on the same team!" Iruka gave her an exasperated look. "Sakura, you're being very unreasonable here, Naruto is a person, and a ninja, so it's both unreasonable and unnecessary for you to act this way." Iruka tried to calm herself, although Sakura didn't seem to want to back down.

"I don't want to. He's not a girl, he's not a ninja, and frankly, a _dope_ doesn't deserve to be on the same team as either of us." Several glares from the rest of the class didn't serve to deter her however, though Iruka managed to. Sakura was well known for acting like she was better then other people, and was also known to be very opinionated.

"Now see here, Miss Haruno!" said Iruka with small traces of killing intent beginning to leak out, "You hold the highest test rate, Sasuke the highest Ninjutsu rate, and Naruto has the lowest of both. He acts as the balance point of all three of you, if he didn't, then he'd end up on a team where he'd probably be killed-"

"And is that such a bad thing?" Sakura grumbled to herself. \

The loud smack of Iruka's hand on the desk made her jump. "Yes. Everyone in the village is important, especially if that person can use Ninjutsu. There are few people capable of this, and as such, anyone who can use chakra is a valuable resource. This village's lively hood is ninja, and everyone of there lives is important, even Naruto's. Now you are going on that team, and if I hear so much as a peep out of you about this again, I will _personally_ send you back to the academy until you understand this principle."

Sakura's face paled, as she shirked back to her chair, leaving the assigning to continue. "Team 8: Hinata Hyuuga, Aburame Shino, and Inuzuka Kiba-" "WOOHOO! I GOT ONE!" Kiba's cheer was cut short as several of the students close to her pounded her into the ground for speaking up. Sitting up with several facial bruises, Kiba sat smugly.

"Well, I didn't get Sasuke, but I got hotty Hinata. Where is she anyways?" Kiba looked left and right, but couldn't see her anywhere.

"Weird, Naruto's gone to...Whatever." Sitting back, she listened as Shikamaru, and Choji were assigned with Ino...

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The roof to Naruto meant a lot of things. It was a place he could escape to, where he could sit, and not be judged by other students, where'd he go whenever he was hurt, and he didn't want anyone around. And right now...He was feeling pretty hurt.

He understood, yes, he was different, he'd always felt that way, and everyone around him only served to reinforce it. But, it still hurt, to be called an…'_it'. _He was a human being! Right? Looking a little mournfully at his tail, he gave it a mournful brush. He just wanted to be accepted, and Iruka's acceptance had given him hope that maybe others might feel the same.

Choji, Shikamaru, and Iruka. Everyone else...He could tell they agreed with Sakura. He knew they became angry with her for making a scene, but they all would have done the same. He could tell.

Sniffing lightly, he almost missed the tiny _'tick' _sound made by a footstep. His ears giving a sudden tweak, Naruto sniffed the air, catching the tiniest hint of lavender. Turning around, he caught the small, blue-haired girl in a jacket by surprise.

"KYAA!" She gave a shout at his sudden attention, falling backwards in surprise at his inquisitive look. "G-gomen. I just got..." She however was at a loss of explanation. Truthfully she'd followed him there.

Naruto however demanded no explanation, instead turning back to the horizon. Hinata took a hesitant step forwards, before walking beside him and sat down. Silence reigned, before she asked finally.

"S..So do you come here often?" She asked. Naruto remained silent for a few moments, before sighing. "If you're trying to trick me or anything please don't. I'm pretty upset right now."

Hinata gave him a confused look, before understanding. "I'm not here to trick you. What Sakura said...I didn't agree with, and I saw you run away, so I followed..."

Naruto's ears dropped a little less, but he still seemed suspicious. "Really? No trick?" She shook her head. Naruto smiled a little.

It was quiet for a little while, before Hinata spoke up. "You shouldn't take what she says seriously. Sakura's...someone who doesn't understand anywhere near as much as she thinks she does."

Naruto gave a sad look, his ears drooping back down. "Ya, but...I just wish others would see me as a person, not just the worlds only boy ninja!"

"W...Well maybe if you didn't wear a fake tail and ears, maybe people would open up to you." Hinata suggested, though she got a dumb look in return for her suggestion.

"Fake? These aren't fake." Hinata in turn gave him a dumb look. "There...there not??" Recieving a nod, she found it still hard to believe.

_'Well...Only one way to find out...' _Unrepentantly, she reached forwards and grabbed his ears, rubbing them gently. Naruto's entire body tensed…before he grew a relaxed posture, a strange noise exiting his throat.

_'Is...He purring?' _Hinata had to say, if these ears were fake, they felt pretty real. "Wow. How'd you get ears and a tail like this?" Letting go of his ears, Naruto shook himself as though he'd suddenly awoken. "That's...A secret." He said shiftily, shying away from her.

"A-alright. Listen, I have to get back to class. I just want you to know that you shouldn't let what people say get to you. If I had, I'd be a completely different person."

Looking her in the eye, Naruto asked a simple question. "Really?"

Hinata smiled "Ya, if I'd given into my father, then I'd be a mindless slave, only alive to do as clan wished. I'm no ones doll." Glowing confidence, she gave a sense of real strength to Naruto in that moment.

"Wow...Your really strong Hina-chan!" Naruto laughed, standing up. Her entire bravado disappeared in an instant, a shy blush spreading on her cheeks. "T-thank you. We'd better get to class."

Turning the two headed back…

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"There you are hotness! Where did you two run off to?!" Kiba gave a shout as the two walked in. He received a smack in the back of the head from Sakura at that comment, lying sprawled on the floor with a dazed look. "T-thank you, Sakura-san." Sakura however didn't pay attention, sitting down in a huff. "Whatever..."

An adult woman in what appeared to be a large scroll wrapped around her body, with long, black curling hair stood by the chalk-board, Kiba and Shino standing beside her. The most prominent feature about her however was the piercing red eyes she had. "Hello. I am Kurenai, I will be your new Sensei. Please, come with me." She turned, Shino and Kiba following, Hinata giving a small wave to Naruto before running off.

A few minutes of silence followed, Sasuke to the far of the room simply staring off at whatever, Sakura sitting there, fuming, and Naruto, who just sat in silence, swishing his tail on the ground. Iruka stepped into the room, looking a little agitated. "I've received word your sensei will be here soon, though why she's so late, I'm not sure."

Turning, she left to do...whatever it was teachers did.

It didn't occur to any of them however that what she meant by 'short while' she meant _'two hours'_. By that time, Sasuke had become restless to the point where she actually considered conversation, Sakura became downright murderous, and Naruto...well Naruto's ears were almost flat against his head. He'd been waiting to long.

"That's it, I can't take it anymore!" Standing up, Sakura walked to the chalkboard, grabbing a bush, before setting it precariously at the top of the sliding door. "Um, Sakura...I don't think its nice for you to-"

"Shut up Naruto!" She snapped back, silencing him. Setting it there, Sakura smirked, before sitting down. "Whoever thinks its okay to make us wait two and a half hours for them to show up obviously deserves to have an eraser dropped on their head." She said matter-of-factly. Naruto didn't bother disagreeing with her, as he didn't want to get yelled at again.

Well, time passed, and no one showed up. Naruto was beginning to miss the idea of having lunch; his stomach was _killing_ him! But he still waited, and his waiting paid off…sort of.

The soft sound of wood rubbing wood caught all three's attention, but the thing that caught them the most was the soft clap of an eraser on someone's head, and a quiet, lazy "Ow."

"I have decided...That whoever dropped this eraser on my head, I hate the most." The woman said. She was...Rather good looking. The green flak jacket most Jounin wore was only partially zipped up, allowing a sizable bust to show. Underneath, a long-sleeved blue shirt was worn, her slender hands covered by two gloves with metal plates on the end. She wore matching blue pants, which tied together with her shirt like a jump suit, her ankles covered by bandages.

Her face though stood out the most. A blue mask, her left eye equally covered by her Hiate, which she wore at a steep slant, covered her mouth, most of her neck and her nose. Her hair was light silver, as messy as though she'd just woken up and decided not to brush her hair, her equally as lazy looking eye reinforcing the idea.

"So, who was it?"

Instantly Sakura pointed at Naruto. "It was him, he did it. I told him not to, but he didn't listen."

The woman raised an eyebrow. "Fine, then I hate him the most. Everyone, follow me to the roof, I want to get to know you all a little better." Standing up, she turned and left.

"She...She hates me...?" Naruto strained out.

"Well what do you expect?" Sakura admonished, marching out, Sasuke sending a "Hn." after her. Standing up, Naruto took off after them, heading for the roof for the second time that day.

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Sitting down on one of the roofs benches, Naruto and Sakura stared intently at there soon to be teacher, whilst Sasuke just stood to the side.

Leaving the woman to her own musings. _'Boy, really picked a winning team with this one.'_

_'I have Haruno Sakura, wears to much damn pink, relies to much on textbook smarts and is so loud I heard her on the way here. Pink hair, pink dress, and green leggings for some reason; It's like she wants to be a plant when she grows up or something.'_

She turned her single eye on Sasuke. _'And we have 'Ms. Avenger' over here.' _She had to admit, Sasuke dressed the part. Blue t-shirt exposing fishnet underbelly, white, baggy shorts, and dark hair; Sasuke was dressed to kill, literally. _'I doubt, however, she's all ok up there since...Well anyways, on to number three..._

_'Oh you've gotta be kidding me! So many no-nos', the list never ends! Bright orange colors, blonde hair, blue eyes, FOX EARS? A TAIL? And he's the world's only male ninja. It's like walking into a room with a fog-horn blaring on you and expecting no one will hear. Well, this teams going down, I wonder how I should worm my way outta this one?'_

"Um...Sensei?" A voice asked out of the blue.

"Yes, what?"

"You said you wanted to get to know us better, shouldn't you ask us some questions?" Naruto received a sharp look, one that sent chills down his spine, before her eye suddenly bent upwards into an upside-down U.

"Why yes, I probably should."

Silence…

"Well, what did you want to ask?"

Again, silence…

"Well...Could we at least know a few things about you, Sensei?" Naruto asked, her eye-smiley freaking him out a little. "Alright, lets see...

"My name...Is Hatake Kakashi. I have some dislikes, I have some likes. And my goals for the future are frankly none of your business, and I shan't answer that." Kakashi's smile never left her face. "Now its your turn. You goooo...Pinky." She said, pointing at Sakura.

Ignoring the comment, Sakura went into her explanation of herself. "My name is Haruno Sakura. I have two great dislikes: Ino-pig and stupid, blonde fox-freaks that don't know when to take a hint-" Naruto hung his head a little at that comment "-my likes are-" Looking over at Sasuke, she blushed heavily. "And my dreams for the future-" This time she squealed and jumped up and down, glancing at Sasuke.

_'Great...She's obsessive-compulsive to...' _Kakashi inwardly sighed. "Okay, now you, emo-girl."

Ignoring the comment, Sasuke continued where Sakura left off. "My name is Uchiha Sasuke, I have few likes, numerous dislikes, and as for my goals...To kill a certain person..." The short, serious speech left Naruto's skin crawling.

Though it had the opposite effect on Sakura, whose eyes had become twin stars, her mouth open and drooling, "So...Cool..." She said in a lovesick fashion.

Naruto shook his head, as Sasuke just looked away. "Alright, and finally, foxy over here." Kakashi said exasperatedly.

"You mean me?" He asked hesitantly.

"Yes, you." Kakashi said.

"Oh...Uh, okay. Um, my name is Uzumaki Naruto. I like...ramen, my friends…umm…I kinda like foxes. I don't like...The three minutes it takes to cook ramen, people who judge me without knowing anything about me...And I guess I don't like it when people step on my tail. Oh! And my dreams for the future are to be the best ninja in the whole village!"

"Hmph, you, Hokage?" Sakura scoffed, though she received an odd look from him.

"Who? Hokage-baasan's job? Why would I want that?" He received blank looks from all three of them.

"N-Naruto, the strongest ninja in the village is the Hokage, everyone knows that." Kakashi said as though she was explaining it to a four-year old.

"Oooohh. Alright, I guess that means I want to be Hokage!" Sakura's eyebrow twitched heavily, before she slugged him sharply, giving a quick "BAKA!"

Rubbing his cheek painfully, Naruto sat up and addressed his new teacher. "So what now, Sensei?"

Kakashi however gave him a surprised look. "What do you mean by that, I'm not your Sensei." Kakashi received surprised looks from Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke although she seemed unfazed.

"Your...Your not?" Sakura asked hesitantly.

"Yes, I'm your potential Sensei, if you pass my test that is."

"Test? What test?" Sasuke surprisingly asked.

"Well, Jounin ninja are allowed to give potential Genin a test to see if there ready. The test you previously participated in was a pre-test, to see which Genin's might be up to par to take place in this test."

Naruto's sweat glands went into overdrive at that. _'If I had so much trouble doing the pre-test, how difficult is the final?!' _

"If you want to see if you're up to par, meet at training ground number 23 (Can't remember which ground, does it really matter?) for the test. You all must attend, if one of you is missing, you all automatically fail."

Turning to leave, Kakashi gave one last call over her shoulder. "Also, don't eat, you'll throw up." Before disappearing in a flash of movement.

Sasuke didn't wait for the others to leave, instead turning and leaving that moment. Sakura left chasing after her, leaving the small blonde to himself. Naruto sat there, dumb-founded.

Walking away from the school at a slow, controlled pace, Naruto was lost in thought. _'I'm going to fail. I went through hell and a half to complete the previous test, and now there's an even harder one after it! I can't stand this; I need to be the best ninja! I need to be Hokage!" _

Naruto's panicked musings were cut short however, as he realized he was home.

And there was smoke coming out of his house. "KUUUSO!" Tearing up the roof, Naruto dashed in through the window (Something you should never-ever-ever do if you see smoke coming out of your house, unless you have a chimney, and only if the smoke is only coming out of the chimney).

"C...c...crap..." He almost cried as he realized he'd left the ramen cooking in the microwave, the once slightly broken-now very broken microwave that has a faulty timer. His ramen had been left cooking in there for about three hours.

"Why...?" Naruto moaned, grabbing a fire extinguisher he kept in the closet.

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A night of rest didn't do much for him. All night, he tossed, turned, and couldn't sleep, the imminent test looming ever closer weighing heavily upon his conscious. He felt as though he was waiting for the death sentence to be carried out on him, as though once the sun rose, and his alarm went off, he'd walk to his inevitable doom.

Showering before putting his usual cloths on, Naruto sat at his table, waiting.

_'Okay, get it together...BUT I CAN'T! I know I'm going to fail, I might as well not even show up!' _The idea of just skipping it seemed almost too good. _'Its not like either of them would mind, Sakura said herself she doesn't want me on her team, and Sasuke...' _Naruto's thoughts drifted off. Sasuke was an enigma of sorts.

He didn't know anything about her, other then the fact she was:

1)A member of a prestigous clan,

2)could get any woman she wanted with a simple glance, and

3)Sasuke was very powerful.

His depressed thoughts ended however, as a small surge of courage welled up inside him. _'I can't back down! I'm a ninja, the world's only boy ninja! If I back down, then what will the world say?! I'd prove what all those girls said about me right, that I'm an idiot who doesn't know anything about being a ninja!' _In one swift moment, Naruto stood up and tore off for the door...

...only to trip on a chair on the way there.

A short walk, and thankfully no more tripping, and Naruto had made it to the training field. Unsurprisingly, Sakura and Sasuke stood under a tree, the slowly rising sun casting a multitude of shadows about. Tentatively, he walked up, giving a wave.

"H-hey." Sakura sent him a glare while Sasuke just ignored him. "Just because we're on the same team, does not mean that I have to communicate with you. Just sit to the side, and leave me and Sasuke-chan to ourselves." Naruto's ears flopped down at the rather mean comment. Hopping up into the tree, he sat on the branch and got comfortable.

They'd wait there for about two hours before Kakashi finally showed up.

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**I do so enjoy these moments before the ensuing battle. I also enjoy cupcakes. **

**There really isn't much to say at this point. Next chapter will be the test, hoping to spice things up there. I'll also begin slowly fleshing out the characters.**

**Sakura's a bitch in this one. In 'Cutting Strings' and 'Jashin', I made her a human being, but for a good while, she will be a monster in the B.I.T.C.H. district, although I plan to flesh out why a little later. I'm sorry, but while I do enjoy a good Sakura bashing once in a while, I don't think she's AS evil as most like to portray her.**

**Although I gotta say, I can see why. Damn its fun making someone look bad!**

**NANANANANANANA-REVIEW! NANANANANANA-REVIEW! NANANANANANANANA-OR ELSE! (think batman theme) **


	4. The Test

**Boldly going nowhere. A motto everyone should uphold.**

**YAY! SIXTEEN REVIEWS!**

**READ!**

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Kakashi wondered if it was a good idea to make them wait. Three hours after her bowl of cereal, and a quick clean up of her home, Kakashi now stood in front of her students. Her currently starved, as she'd predicted, clearly agitated students. Even Naruto's eyes had a murderous glint to them, and he had the personality of a kitten!

"Ummm...yeah, right on time!" Kakashi laughed. Her two other students actually growled. Like dogs. Angry dogs.

"On time...ON TIME? Do you have any idea how late you are?! You said to be here bright and early! Where, in this freakin' village have you been you freak?!" Sakura screamed.

Kakashi scratched her ear, inspecting for earwax. "Hmmm? Oh, did you say something Sakura?"

Silence.

"GRRRRAAAAAAAAAH! I'll kill you!!!" Sakura lunged at their teacher, restrained by Naruto, who held onto her waist with all his strength.

"Sakura-chan, please calm down!" Naruto vainly cried, receiving a kick to the shin.

"Shut up! She deserves to die for putting us through all that!"

Kakashi's laughter actually snapped Sakura out of it, setting them all on edge. "Hahaha, that? You think that's a lot to be put through? Try going through a six-month mission to defend a person, only to find out that they never intended to pay you, and then they try to double-cross you. THAT is something to be put through. Now shut up you three, and listen to sensei." Sakura growled, but relaxed, giving a smack to Naruto's head for good measure.

"Well, despite my...slight...tardiness, we can start now. I will be testing you three-" Kakashi pointed to them individually "-on your abilities as ninja physically and mentally. You will be tested from the time this alarm starts and stops." Kakashi pulled a clock (Yes, without a typo this time. Readers of Cutting Strings will get this reference. Stupid typo.) and placed it on top of a training log a short distance behind her.

"When this starts, so does the test. In the time it takes to go off, you must steal these bells-" Kakashi held up a pair of bells silver bells that jingled when shaken "-from me, a Jounin."

Sakura however raised an eyebrow. "But, hold on. There are only _two _bells there. And three of us."

Kakashi's only visible eye rose up in a 'U' shape. "Wow, you ARE a bright one, aren't you!" Sarcasm leaked from her voice, raising Sakura's ire.

"Yes. The person among you that doesn't have a bell when the clock goes off..."

"Fails and is sent back to the academy." Sasuke for the first time interjected. Naruto's face paled violently, his pupils shrinking to pinpricks.

"Wha-what?! That can't be-is that true?!" He asked, his voice a little shrill.

Kakashi's smiley-eye remained up. "Why yes, it is. So I suggest that you guys come at me with the intent to kill, because that's the only way you'll even get a chance to TOUCH me."

"Any questions?" The three of them remained silent, Naruto twisting his ears in anxiety, Sasuke leaning and smirking, while Sakura pushed her anxiety inwards. "Alright. You have five minutes to hide yourselves." With a wave of her hand, Sasuke and Sakura took off in a blur. Naruto twisted his ears fearfully, swiveling his head left and right, surprised to find himself alone.

"Um, Naruto...that last comment included you as well you know?" Naruto gulped slightly, before trudging off at a slow pace. Kakashi shook her head. _'These three have a snowballs chance in hell.'_ Shaking her head, she relaxed as the clock ticked down.

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It had been a long time since Sasuke had felt like this. Adrenaline pumped periodically through her veins, making everything around her grow more vibrant, her attention to her surroundings skyrocketing. The cold metal of the kunai in her hand, the sun casting shadows, which could in turn be hiding places of a certain sensei. Oh yes, it had been a long time since she'd felt like this.

Felt alive. Not since the-

Cutting herself off, Sasuke's mood plummeted at the unconscious reminder. A sudden movement to the left of her vision caught her attention, unconsciously she hunched lower behind the tree. This act was unnecessary however, as into the clearing stumbled none other then Naruto. Or so it appeared anyway...

Sasuke wasn't about to take any chances, so she opted to remain in the trees, and watch. While she did this, her mood plummeted even lower, as she remembered the brief and accidental kiss they'd momentarily shared. She mentally shook at the thought of even being associated with the blonde dead last.

And her other teammate? Another shudder ran down her spine at whatever Sakura would attempt on her should she let her guard down on a mission. _'I'm not going to get stronger if I have dead weight and a stalker on my team. If it were just me and sensei, there'd be no one to weigh me down. I'd be that much stronger.' _That sealed it for her. Sasuke was going for both bells, on her own.

After all, who needed teammates who held you back?

"My, aren't we comfortable?" A voice spoke up behind her, a presence that had not been there a moment ago becoming painfully aware to Sasuke. Launching away from the tree, she back flipped around, landing in a crouch. Kakashi remained perched on the tree behind the one she had been on, idly flipping through a small orange book.

"Four kunai, twelve shuriken, three explosive tags, four feet of ninja wire, and extra bandages." Sasuke raised an eyebrow in confusion "You really should have packed more Sasuke, in any situation its good to be prepared." Sasuke's cheeks reddened, as she processed how Kakashi could have known about the contents of her pouch.

She had actually looked in her pouch, located on the left of her backside, without her noticing. Another chill ran down Sasuke's spine at the thought of someone's hand being that close to her thigh without noticing. For that, her sensei would die. In a flurry, Sasuke hurled a volley of shuriken at her sensei, preparing to leap into the air to combo with some fireballs-

When to her surprise the shurikens connected with Kakashi's face, causing a spray of blood to fly up. Sasuke was wary however, as the hairs on the back of her neck suddenly rose up.

"My-my, your taking this more seriously then the other two are, aren't you Sasuke?" Kakashi's voice spoke up yet again behind her neck. Growling, Sasuke dove forwards into a roll, before whirling around and running through a familiar set of handseals.

**"KATON: GOUKYAKU NO JUTSU!" **Kakashi froze for a moment, stunned, before she leapt into the treetops, away from the fireball hurled from Sasuke's mouth. _'Wow, a Genin knowing a technique of this level huh? This is going to be promising after all...'_

From the bushes he'd taken cover in, Naruto cowardly shook, his eyes wide with fear at the ferocity in Sasuke's attack. "S-so scary..." He mumbled to himself. While his seisoku techniques were definitely handy, the sheer firepower of Sasuke's 'grand fireball' made him shiver at the thought of being hit with it.

"Naruto? What are you doing in the bushes like that?"

Naruto nearly leapt out of his skin in shock as someone spoke up behind him. Ears tipped straight wards, tail bushed in shock, he slowly swiveled around to find Haruno Sakura behind him, giving a perplexed look. "O-oh, hello Sakura-chan, how are you?"

Sakura frowned at his cowering however. "Naruto, you have no spine, do you know that? You can't even work up the courage to fight Kakashi-sensei. Not like..." Sakura broke off on a tangent, eyes glazed over. Naruto surmised that Sakura was talking about her beloved Sasuke.

"Anyway, you can't hide in the bushes like a coward the whole time, you gotta fight as hard as you can! Do you want to be bumped back to Genin?" Sakura was pleased to note that Naruto's fearful demeanor was fading slightly.

"Y-your right, Sakura-chan. I'm...I'm supposed to fight, that's why I'm here, that's what a ninja does. Domo-arigatou." Naruto gulped, stood up, and ran into the clearing where Sasuke and Kakashi battled.

Sakura smirked however. She had hoped Naruto was gullible enough to believe something like that. Now all she had to do was wait for an opportunity to strike at the bells, and she would have Sasuke all to herself on a team without the blonde. She was inwardly giddy at the thought.

This giddiness was short-lived however. "Sakura, if your going to give someone advice, be sincere about it. Teammates do not take kindly to being manipulated."

Sakura slowly swiveled her head around, to face her teachers. "S-sensei, I-"

"Don't give me an explanation Sakura, just don't do it again."

It was the last conscious thing Sakura remembered was the half smile of Kakashi's eye.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_Meanwhile_

**BOOM!**

The third and final explosive tag Sasuke had went off with a resounding explosion, shaking the trees in the clearing, disrupting birds. And to Sasuke's dismay, Kakashi remained completely calm, faced remained buried in her book. Growling, Sasuke drew a kunai and dove forwards. She met Kakashi, sending a low kick, before somersaulting backwards, aiming her legs in a way to send her opponent cart wheeling in the air.

Kakashi easily sidestepped and landed a square kick into the center of Sasuke's back, without even looking up. Sasuke skidded to a stop several feet away, lying on her front. Achingly, she pushed herself back up into a sitting position, sending a glare towards her teacher. Kakashi remained unfazed.

"You've lost this already Sasuke. You've wasted far too much chakra, and you've expelled what few tools you had. Just give up how, and come back when you're ready the next time." The last comment sent Sasuke's fury boiling to the surface.

"I decide when I'm through, not some silver haired pervert." Sasuke's kunai twirled in her palm, and she set herself into a stance.

"We'll see." Kakashi drawled, flipping a page.

Silence. Neither moved, Sasuke out of uncertainty, Kakashi out of sheer laziness. It seemed both would remain motionless if the other made no movement. Thankfully an outside force changed this for both of them.

An outside force named Uzumaki, who descended form above like a blonde comet. "LOOK OUT BELOW!" With the angle he dove in, Kakashi was able to duck, placing the now very confused boy in front of her.

"Eh?" Naruto looked left and right trying to locate the seemingly dematerialized Kakashi. A chill went up his spine as a voice suddenly spoke behind him.

"You shouldn't leave your back open to your opponents." The currently kneeling Kakashi said, fingers in a seal that made Naruto's eyes widen like Saucers. "T-the tiger seal-" He was cut off as Kakashi unleashed her fearsome technique.

"Sennen Garoshi!" (On thousand years of pain) Naruto had the unfathomably unpleasant experience of having two fingers violently poked in a place the sun had never shone before. Sasuke, who had been shocked at the introduction of an only fire seal, frowned heavily, watching as her supposed teammate rocketed overhead screaming, landing with a resounding splash in the small pond behind them.

"Idiots...I'm surrounded by idiots." Sasuke shook her head, before crouching low into the standard Uchiha fighting stance. Kakashi was now standing, reading her book as though she hadn't just done THAT.

"Are you going to stand there all day, or are you going to actually come at me?" Kakashi flipped a page, with her other hand she made a 'come here' wave.

_'I can't lose, not like this. I've come too far to lose, and I won't let my cowardice hold ME BACK!'_

The depths of the once peaceful pond frothed violently, beginning to bubble. Sasuke's and her possible teacher looked to its surface, watching in surprise as more and more bubbles rose from its depths; as if the water was bubbling. Then it went quiet.

"Hmmm, well that was stra-" Kakashi was violently cut short as the water exploded, and from it flew-

A hand, formed of pure crimson chakra rose from the depths of the calm pool like so type of enraged leviathan. Kakashi had little time to dodge before it impacted the ground where her feat had been a moment before. The impact left a crater about the same size as Kakashi's body. Landing in a crouch, Kakashi's eyes were both set on the smoking hole, confused and unsure what she was seeing. Then the cloud cleared.

The hand was indeed made of chakra, as well as the long snaking arm it was attached to. The appendage of which traced back to the pond, were a certain blond was standing up shakily, a look of surprising determination on his face. "I can't lose, not after all of this." He said, the ethereal appendage snaking back to him.

Both his arms were wreathed in visible chakra, red and coiling, his fingers ending in claws. It was certainly a portrait neither the Jounin or fellow Genin thought they'd see Naruto of all people fill. "C-come at me, I need a bell." He stuttered, crouching on all fours, ears tucked back, tail held high.

"N-Naruto, what was that technique is that?" Sasuke managed to ask, looking at him as though he'd grown a second head. _'W...was Naruto always like this?' _

Naruto's ears perked up, turning to the direction of Sasuke, his head following. "U-um...are you asking me?" Sasuke scowled darkly.

"Yes you idiot, you!" He frowned.

"Ummmm...it's....a secret." If anything, Sasuke's scowl grew deeper, casting a feeling of deeper and deeper despair upon the blonde. _'M-maybe I should have just told her...' _However, Naruto steeled himself, turning back to his teacher who hadn't stopped to read her book yet, still watching him waveringly. This confused Naruto, but he didn't comment on it.

_'This chakra...is the seal so weakened he can pull it out at will? What if the fox is manipulating him?' _Kakashi was worried, for the first time since this had begun; there was an actual threat in front of her. Naruto was a Jinchuriki, and a demon was not a plaything. She would have to face this enemy seriously, and if Naruto showed signs of being controlled...

_'...I'll likely have to put him down.' _Kakashi's eyes narrowed at the thought. It was hopefully unnecessary, but if it needed doing she would do it without hesitation. Until she knew for certain she'd just watch though. Her opinion of the blonde was grudgingly growing.

"W-whatever, just stay back Naruto, this fight is mine. You'd only get in the way." Sasuke said, taking a step forwards. Naruto looked at her again, his face copasetic.

Then he frowned. "T-this is-is a TEAM survival exer-exercise. I can fight if I want." Sasuke fixed him a look, but his resolution only wavered in voice.

"Fine, do whatever you want." Sasuke growled, turning back to her opponent. "I'm coming!" She broke into a run.

Kakashi was waiting, her stance ready. With a swish Sasuke had pulled out two kunai, one for each hand, before leaping high into the air. With a flurry of blades, Kakashi had caught her wrists with a single hand. The kick that came up grazed her chin, before Kakashi back flipped away. Sasuke smirked. _'I set up a booby trap by that tree not too long ago, all I have to do is keep pushing her towards it and-"_

A blast like a cannon issued from her front as a chakra-enforced appendage connected with the ground, narrowly missing her head. "D-dammit Naruto, you almost killed me!" He gave her a sheepish look, which only furthered to irritate the girl

"G-gomen, they're hard to control..." He retracted his arm, before tearing off across the field on all fours.

_'He runs just like a fox...' _Kakashi noted, placing it under possibility of him being controlled. It wasn't looking good for Naruto. Jumping low, Naruto skidded to a stop in a crouch, beside Sasuke. "Sorry again, I was aiming for sensei and-"

"You idiot, she's getting away!" Sasuke shouted, having turned to Naruto for a moment, she turned back to where the Jounin was, finding the spot empty.

"Dammit!" Sasuke cursed, crouching to jump away when a glint caught her eye. Naruto noticed as well, a huge grim filling his face. "A-a bell!" Indeed, it appeared as though in her haste to leave, Kakashi had in fact left a bell! Sasuke raised an eyebrow, but didn't take the initiative to worn Naruto of the possible trap.

It would have helped the world's only ninja to know that there was a rope waiting underneath his foot, springing upwards and dragging him along with it. "G-gaaaah!" He waved in surprise as the rope bounced him up and down. Feeling nauseous, it took him a moment to regain his bearings; blood was already rushing to his head.

"I thought so. Take this as a lesson and just stay strung up like that, the world of ninja's isn't for a boy like you." The last part held the edge of venom Sasuke was known for, and coiled through Naruto.

"U-ummm." He honestly didn't know how to respond as Sasuke walked forwards, eyes set on the bell.

The second rope sprang with a lash, ensnaring the shocked Uchiha instantly. She too bounced upwards and downwards, before stopping, eyes widened in surprise, far wider then they'd been in a while. Then she frowned, lips curling upwards (She was upside-down). Soft crunching of footsteps was heard, before Kakashi revealed herself from behind a bush.

"Your one to talk, Sasuke." Kakashi said, picking up the bell off the ground. "And she may be right Naruto, if you can't see underneath the underneath, you should probably stay out of this business, otherwise you could get killed." She turned around, placing the bell with the second and pulling out her book.

"Ummm...Sasuke-chan-"

"Not. A. Word." She fixed him with a dark look, before pulling out her emergency kunai from her ankle. While she wasn't looking, Naruto snuck a small smile. Maybe he had hope yet, if he could 'look underneath the underneath'. Sasuke landed on the ground soundlessly, not turning to glance at her other.

"Umm, could I maybe borrow that kunai?" Naruto asked. He got his response in the form of Sasuke's back retreating into the thicker foliage.

"Ooooh..." Naruto frowned. _'I think this might be a little harder then I thought...'_ Reaching up at his ankles, he managed to grip the rope with his chakra-bathed hands. A moment later the rope began to burn, disintegrating under the chakra influence. Naruto landed on his back with a thud, before springing up on all fours.

"Now if I was a one-eyed sensei, where would I hide?" He looked left and right, before sneaking off into the foliage.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Kakashi was content to just read her book; it was starting to get particularly spicy...

Which made her intruder particularly annoying.

"My, your a lot more incessant then the other two..." Kakashi trailed off, looking up from her book for a moment. Sasuke stood opposite her, eyes as fierce as they'd ever been. "I've had enough of this idiotic running around. This ends NOW." Kakashi simply raised an eyebrow at her smaller counterpart.

"Well you seem pretty sure of yourself, alright, come at me." Kakashi stance didn't change; she hadn't even looked up from her book. The only thing that had changed was the air around her, becoming tense in preparation. Sasuke readied her stance.

A soft wind blew across the training course. Neither moved.

Then, Sasuke was gone.

_'Above.' _Kakashi didn't need to look to know. She raised her arm, catching Sasuke's leg as it flew downwards to her head, Sasuke herself not stopping there. Her left first came around, and with the same hand Kakashi had caught her leg with, she managed to snag the same fist. Sasuke now hung upside down, her arm and leg held by Kakashi.

Sasuke smirked.

_'Dammit!' _Kakashi realized almost too late what her potential student had done. She now had a clear shot at the bells. Kakashi had to choose then and there as precious nanoseconds ticked by. _'Porn or teaching....that is the eternal question.'_

Sasuke's finger brushed the bells, its delightful jingling catching her ear before she was thrown clear across the clearing, landing in a crouch. Kakashi stood, eyes set impassively upon her irritated student. _'Damn, so close that time. I'll get the bells soon.' _Sasuke stood, eyes set angrily upon her seemingly impassive teacher.

Sasuke knew better. Kakashi's face was no longer buried in her book; she had recognized her skill and was now forced to actually pay attention. That in itself was testament to her strength. This did make her feel better, but still. She could only manage to make this woman look up from her book, not outright defeat her.

She was still so weak...

"Well, rather then wait for you to attack me, I think it prudent to intervene." Kakashi disappeared, Sasuke's eyes only having the time to widen. _'From behind?!' _Sasuke turned. Nothing. _'Then from above or the sides.' _Sasuke whirled around, trying to spot her opponent. Nothing. _'But then that only leaves-' _

A soft crack met her ears.

"Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!"

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Sasuke-chan..." Sakura purred softly, a small amount of drool slowly rolling down her cheek. Naruto raised an eyebrow at his team partner. "This seems like a bad place to take a nap." He said to himself. While he knew better, he felt it was his duty as the future leader of the village to wake her.

Big mistake.

"DAMMIT NARUTO! I was having the most wonderful dream!" Sakura growled at what had been Naruto, but was now a smoking crater of a person face down in the dirt, a huge throbbing goose egg on his head. "Your a real pest sometimes, gaki." She sighed to herself, crossing her arms and looking sideways.

She received a muffled "...gomen..."

"Well I'm off to find Sasuke-chan, you...just don't follow me." She said, waving her hair to the side and walking off.

Naruto remained in the soil.

Sakura marched off, searching for her counterparts. The forests eerie quiet made her extremely uneasy, as though the silence could be split any second. A twig snapping made her jump, before she relaxed, a fox trotting off towards where'd she come. Turning, she caught the light of a clearing ahead.

Trekking through the underbrush, she tentatively poked her head out into the forest, before she screamed and fell forwards.

The seemingly severed head of Uchiha Sasuke starred at her for a moment, before growling to herself. _'Useless fangirls." _

Struggling vainly in the soil, Sasuke growled to herself once more, her frustration rising to new heights. The nerve of that teacher sometimes! Yanking her underground by the ankles, a pointless technique (She completely missed how the technique had been a success, and how she was now trapped underground with no room to move)! Sasuke was fuming on the inside, missing that essentially her teacher was TRYING to teach her something...

Her frustration was at a mid-boil when the familiar blonde stumbled into the clearing, looking around, before spotting his teammates. "OH MY GOD!" He exclaimed, Sasuke's eyebrow twitching at the blondes reaction. "Yes, yes, DIG ME OUT YOU IDIOT!" She exclaimed with much agitation. Naruto took a moment to blink, before walking forwards and crouching down to get a better look.

"...your not dead?" He asked, poking her forehead experimentally. That was it.

"YES, NOW DIG ME OUT!" Sasuke howled, Naruto leapt backwards, tail cast upwards and bushy.

He blinked, before he relaxed and scratched his head. "Ummmm....how? Do you want me to dig around you?"

"Yes!" Sasuke exclaimed, just happy to get somewhere with this idiot. He nodded, walking up and starting to dig barehanded into the soil around her front. Sasuke sighed, before her eyes flashed firm, and she scowled. "Umm...what do you think your doing?" Naruto looked up from his digging, and came to grasp the situation.

"Keep your hands away from my chest please." Sasuke said the neutrality of her statement was completely uprooted by the cold and furious aura that surrounded her.

"A-ah...right." He set to work on her back. Several minutes of digging later, and Sasuke was finally able to move her arm.

With a crack her arm was free, allowing Sasuke to push herself out of the hole. A moment later her entire body was out, although dirt did still cling to her clothing. _'Damn you Kakashi, when I catch you, oh the pain that will commence...' _Images of burning scarecrows filled her head.

"Ummm...yo-your welcome?" Naruto spoke up behind her.

Sasuke turned. "Ah? Oh...yeah...thank you." She said with a low voice and passing glance, heading off in the direction Kakashi was in. Sasuke unfortunately missed a rare smile spread on Naruto's face, one that made him light up like a sunbeam. _'I....I was thanked by someone! I'll try extra hard, to not hold anyone back!' _With renewed vigor he set off after Sasuke.

Before backtracking a moment later to check whether Sakura was all right. Finding her unconscious, he looked left and right worriedly, before lowering his head and gulping. Some awkward attempts at picking her up later, he had managed to comfortably carry her on his back, in a position akin to sitting.

High in the trees, Kakashi gave an amused smirk to herself, watching the blonde take off after Sasuke. "Well, its certainly the closest thing I've seen too teamwork today. Lets see if they can pull through with a little extra push..." Kakashi faded into the shadows of the foliage, mentally ticking off the last seconds of the timer.

At the other side of the clearing the clock went off.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Sasuke sat on the ground, hunched and glaring.

Sakura sat on the ground, looking a little worse for ware.

And Naruto remained propped against a stump, completely restrained by cords of rope.

Kakashi looked at her three potential students with the closest thing she had to a smile. Her eye remained in an inverted U shape, something that creeped all three of them out too no end. "So, time for break then." Kakashi said, pulling from behind her two bento boxes.

Naruto took that moment to raise the most pressing question he had. "Umm...Kaka-sensei?" He asked nervously.

"Hmm?" Kakashi raised her one visible eyebrow.

"W-why am I tied to a stump?" He indicated with his head, nudging the stump.

"Hmm. Well, I couldn't pick which one of you to punish the most, so I decided at random. Your not very lucky Naruto." Kakashi said with a wave. Naruto simply hung his head.

"Its in my professional opinion-" Kakashi handed Sakura and Sasuke a bento "That all three of you should quit being Shinobi all together. Especially you Sakura." All three of them flinched at the harsh criticism, Sakura in particular.

"W-what do you mean in particular?! I had the highest grade point-"

"Grades are worthless if you can't stay conscious for more then ten minutes on the battlefield." Sakura and Naruto flinched. Sasuke completely agreed, though she never voiced it. "You other two are no better. Naruto, you fought nothing like a ninja out there. While I will admit that technique of yours certainly caught me by surprise, you didn't implement it to anywhere near its potential.

"After that first attack, all you did was follow what others told you, not taking part in the battle at all. Listening to orders is important, but when you're too afraid to use your head, then you are of no help." If possible, Naruto hung his head lower.

_'Che, scaredy cat.' _Sasuke remarked to herself in agreement.

"And finally Sasuke. Your display was almost as bad as Sakura's." Sasuke didn't say anything, her scowl only deepening to the point her eyes were thing slits. "Your techniques and fighting style were excellent. Just like how Naruto's technique was impressive. It was an advantage that definitely benefits, but you ultimately squandered it." Sasuke was seething internally by then, feeling a sour taste in her mouth at being compared to the blonde.

"And that is what brings me to my final point, what you all missed-" Kakashi stood up, and leaned forwards at a completely vertical angle. An angle by which gave all three a good eyeful of certain assets. "YOU ALL DON'T USE TEAMWORK." Kakashi said with emphasize on every word.

Reactions were varied.

Sasuke gave Kakashi a look that summed up the phrase "What the hell would I do with that."

Sakura looked at Sasuke and Naruto, deciding teamwork was only possible between one of them. It wasn't Naruto.

Naruto's ears turned back, his eyes drooping low in realization he'd failed to see the true meaning of the test; like a lot of tests that he had taken in the past.

"The point of this entire thing was to test your three's ability to assess the enemy and work together appropriately. To be fair, you all have never worked together, and that's why I decided to take it easier on you and let you learn on your own. Clearly you're either too stubborn, too stupid, or too conceited to work together however. Hence why I'm spelling it out for you." Kakashi crossed her arms and stood up.

"Its not like they would have been any help to me anyways." Sasuke said coldly, taking her other teammates back with surprise.

"Sasuke, get over yourself. There is NO WAY you could beat me. That brush with the bells? It was a slip on my part. If you had attacked three pages before I would have easily had the concentration to knock you back. At my worst you only come close to completing your goal." Sasuke growled, though Kakashi took no heed, continuing.

If anything, Sasuke grew more frustrated as Kakashi rambled on. "In the world of ninja strong teamwork is necessary. You'll find many situations where working as a team is far more beneficial then going solo. For instance-" Sasuke founder herself facedown on the ground, a kunai poised over her scalp with menace.

"Sakura! Kill Naruto or Sasuke dies!"

Sakura froze up, arms raised, while Naruto flailed his feet, shock and horror etched on his face. "WHAT?!"

Kakashi however just smiled, letting Sasuke back up. "You see? Knowing how to work as a team would have been a lot more lucrative then just sitting there like a deer in the headlights." Grudgingly Sasuke had to agree with this as she brushed herself off and her supposed sensei sat down.

"Now then. I'm giving you two bento, and Naruto can't have any. Go back on my word and I'll cause you a fate worst then death itself." Kakashi's tone remained sickeningly sweet for the entire statement. "I'll be back in a bit." With that, Kakashi was gone with a blur.

The silence among the three was actually tangible. Literally. You could have packaged it. SILENCE IN A CANISTER, NOW WITH TWENTY PERCENT MORE AKWARD! BE THE ENVY OF FRIENDS! THE CENTRE OF THE PARTY! NOW WITH SILENCE IN A CAN!

Warningsilenceinacandoesnotendorse,eatting,drinkingand,or,fartingdonotconsumesilenceinacan,donotlookatsilenceinacan,donottalkaboutsilenceinacan,noreturns,moneywillnotberefundedandjustsoyouknowthisisn'tarealproductitsallbeingmadeupbyalunaticwhowrotethisstory,whoapparrantlydoesn'tusespaces.

A-NY-WAYS...

Yeah, it was really quiet around the stump that day.

Then there was chewing. Occasionally there was the sound of swallowing. And then a loud gurgle interrupted it. "G-gomen." Naruto said awkwardly, his stomach had decided to betray him on this one. He'd actually been quite content to just remain at his post (Literally) and let the other two who had apparently done more then him enjoy their meal.

This was his punishment.

Then a scent filled his extremely powerful nose. Rice, coupled with other delicacies, flavored to almost perfection and prepared with someone who was clearly slight of hand. The scent filled his mind, his body and soul, it encompassed him, became him, and then he was the scent. And he the scent expressed itself in the most epitomes way that it could.

"Gurgle." He said out loud, an imitation of his stomach. The other two simply stared, before Sasuke spoke.

"Your weird. Eat up." Naruto looked at her in confusion. Then the food. Then back at her.

"Why?" Sasuke frowned in irritation. "BECAUSE your my teammate and that b#$% is right unfortunately. We need to work together. So open up, or I swear I'll shove it down your throat." Naruto however still remained worried.

"But sensei said that if-" He stopped talking as a ball of raise invaded its way into his open mouth, slipping down his esophagus.

"GAH!" He gasped after swallowing in alarm.

"There, you've eaten. You might as well choke down some more then." Sakura looked at her food, then too her crush, before grudgingly raised her box too the blondes face. He looked at the two plates with skepticism and starvation. Then gave in, his hunger getting the better of him.

One bite was all that he got too enjoy before what we all knew was about too happen.

"WHAT THE HELL DID I JUST SAY?!!!!" Kakashi appeared in an explosion of leaves and dust, arms at her sides, eyes wild with fury. Her lazy hair now bristled with power, flashing silver like a blade. Sasuke and Sakura and Naruto sat stock still, not moving, not breathing. Like doomed statues.

"THERE"S ONLY ONE THING TO DO WITH TRAITORS LIKE YOU!" Kakashi said. A single tear rolled down the petrified Naruto. It would likely be his last.

"Let you all pass the test!" Kakashi said brightly. Naruto vomited.

"E...ewww." Sakura said, finding knees a much different number of colors. Sasuke agreed silently. "Okay, I think I might have over done it a little there. I enjoy that kinda thing, messing with people's heads. But yeah, you three just barely, teensily pass. Why? Because, those who go against their instructions are trash, but those who desert there friends and teammates are lower then trash."

"This is a sign you three have potential. And yes, I will be your teacher from now on. Just think, you three get to spend the rest of your Genin career under my tutelage. Think of the fun!" This time Sakura almost vomited, bile rising too the top of her throat.

"Right. Same time tomorrow. I have some papers to fill out. See ya." She was gone again.

With that, Sakura and Naruto fell limp, while Sasuke took that moment to get away from her so called 'friends'. Truth be told, all three of them were unsure whether passing the test was a good thing. None of them knew what the future would hold.

But, as Sakura stood up and walked off, and Naruto stood on his too feet, they would be ready.

It was promptly after Sakura left that Naruto remembered he was still tied to the post.

'_Okay, after I untie myself,'_ he thought, _'I'm ready.'_

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**Yep. Thats that part. Kinda sappy ending, and that random offshoot you can all just ignore if you want. But its here, and thats what counts. This took a lot longer then expected, I gotta tell you.**

**  
Don't hold your breath for an update. I'm going to be concentrating 100% on cutting strings and school from now on, so you may not see an update for a year. Hopefully sooner, but don't hold your breath.**

**Has anyone noticed there are less people on fanfiction? Or am I just that paranoid?**

**REVIEW!**


	5. Demons in the mist

**A trembling beat, followed by a cacophony of rythum.**

**Music too the beat of life.**

**And thus with strange precedings I return.**

**Not much reviewer turnout from last chapter. I'm wondering if the fic world has forgotten about me in these times. Well, theres a whole new generation of readers, and I hope I can keep up.**

**Too the few loyals who still catch up, this ones for you.**

**READ! **

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Oh my! My precious Tora, come back to me my beloved!" Her voice could have made nails on a chalkboard sound like a soothing river flow. The daimyo of fire country had poor taste in women, was the sentiment Kakashi held very dear to herself, next too her opinion of pink jumpsuits. Horrible jumpsuits.

"Y-yes, well, with Naruto here, the cat is fairly easy to capture. Seems he has a liking to him." The cat remained firmly gripped to Naruto's upper body, starring at the woman as though she was the devil incarnate.

"G-go on Tora-kun." Naruto said hesitantly, holding the cat out for the woman, who seemed to blur over too him and latch onto the cat.

The cat didn't like this, as it lashed out with a yowl and lodged its claws into both of Naruto's cheeks. The daimyo's wife didn't seem to notice this, as she wrenched the poor animal away, leaving Naruto with twelve whiskers instead of six. "Graaah..." He held his hands too them tenderly while a tear rolled down his face.

_'Idiot.' _ Sasuke and Sakura thought unanimously while he slowly rubbed his cheeks.

Kakashi remained indifferent. "Anyways, the mission is complete." She turned indicatively too the senior ninja at her desk. "Yes, if you would please Mrs..." She stopped choking the life out of her cat for a moment before nodding.

"Yes, of course, here you are." She said, handing over a small wad of bills.

"Excellent. Mission complete." The Hokage said, stamping the scroll with a 'complete'. "Team seven, you're all free to leave." She said with a wave over her hand.

Kakashi turned to go, however, she stopped when she realized she was the only one other then the daimyo's wife who had. "Guys?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"We've...been meaning to ask about something." Sakura spoke up, Naruto nodding and Sasuke remaining unmoving with her usual scowl. "We've been doing these sorts of missions for a while now. Sure, its good practice as Kakashi-sensei has explained numerous times-" Sakura nodded her head in her sensei's direction, who just waved a hand.

"-and we as a team, me and Sasuke-"

"And me" Added Naruto

"-As a TEAM-" Sakura put emphasis on the team, silencing her teammate who looked down at the ground "-we want a better mission. Practice is fine, but all we've learned is that chores are boring! There has to be a better mission we can take part in, instead of weeding or planting, or the occasional house painting!" Sakura waved her arms.

"A better mission eh? Kakashi, what are your thoughts?" The Hokage looked over at one of her best ninja.

Though Kakashi scratched her head in thought. "I don't know. You three barely work together as A TEAM, as Sakura was talking about-" Sakura at least had the decency to give a sheepish look. "But on the other hand they seem to have there hearts set on it, and it would be a good training experience..."

Sakura bent forwards on one knee, her face in a pout with large eyes shining brightly, reflecting a rainbow of greens and white light. "Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeease Kaka-sensei? We'd owe you one." She added a tremble too her lip for effect.

"That look has never worked on me before Sakura, what makes you think it will this time."

"..."

"I said it wasn't going to work."

"..."

"...fine, what do you two think?"

Naruto paled slightly as the occupants of the room suddenly fixed all their attention on both him and his counterpart. "Ah..um, well, you see-um-"

"Yes, a better mission would be perfect." Naruto's ears spiked at attention, turning to the raven-haired girl beside him. "I'm growing tired of no challenges, and a harder mission would be perfect too get me out of my rut."

Naruto frowned, but quickly regained his usual composure when the hairs on the end of his neck suddenly shot up. "And you Naruto? Do you wish to partake in this as well?" Naruto started to sweat.

_'Say yes, or I'll light that bushy ass tail of yours on fire.' _Sasuke thought to herself, her glare suddenly shining dangerously.

_'If you ever want to wake up again, you'll say yes.' _Sakura's eyes made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end even higher, if that was possible.

_'Please for the love of God don't say yes, this week there's an Icha-Icha convention!"_ Kakashi's composure didn't show it, but inside she was crossing her fingers.

_'I wonder if I left the kettle on at home.' _The Hokage thought to herself, before remembering she had servants for that.

"I-I think we should go." There was a cheer of happiness (Sakura), a sigh of relief (Sasuke), and a mental moan that stretched the fathoms of the unconscious world that followed this (Gee, who doya think?).

"Okay, then team seven, I'd like you too meet your new client. Tazuna-san, we have some volunteers for you!"

A door to the right of the room slid open with a snap, and a gruff voice caught the sensitive ears of a certain fox boy. "Whoa, when you said they'd be young, I thought you meant teens. That one in the middle looks some sort of wannabe fox-freak."

Tazuna stood in the doorway with a bottle in his hands; simple peasant cloths that looked extremely dirty were gruffly draped on his equally gruff shoulders. The man also smelled of alcohol, something Naruto quickly picked up on. He swaggered in and fixed the three of them with a penetrating look, dwelling most on Naruto.

"Make up your mind kid, you wanna be a ninja or an animal, huh?" Naruto remained quiet, but he was finding it difficult. "Che, no backbone it seems. Are you sure these three runts can get me home safely?"

The Hokage looked at him, but didn't comment. "Well, if they're not, Kakashi is more then qualified to handle a C-rank mission on her own." Naruto perked up at this information, Sakura and Sasuke's eyes widening.

"Team seven, it is your job as Tazuna's body guards to get him safely to the Land of Waves. Kakashi?"

Kakashi walked over to Tazuna, taking a more upright pose. "Your life is safe with us, Tazuna-san."

Tazuna however fixed her with a look. "Baby you can take care of me anytime."

Kakashi didn't falter in composure however, only muttering, "You obviously don't know much about ninja, huh?"

"We accept the mission." She said too her superior. With a nod, the Hokage lifted the stamp of approval and lowered it with a hefty 'thump'.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

That night, Naruto barely slept. Truth be told, he was nervous too the point that he'd gone as far as to double his normal exercise regiment out of a combination of anxiety and feeling of inadequacy. Truthfully he hadn't been sure he was ready for that mission, but he wouldn't let his teammates down.

Still, his stomach wouldn't settle the entire night, as questions revolved in his head. _'What if...what if I die? What if I get someone killed? Will I be doomed on the first mission I take part in? Is everyone...right about me? Am I just a failure? I don't think-I DON'T THINK I'M READY FOR THIS!!'_ For the next hours he remained awake and starring at the ceiling.

Morning came like it did every day.

Blearily he got up and headed for the bathroom in his usual routine. A brief shower, followed by a drying and puffing (He was always getting annoyed with his fur), he was partially prepared. A short half hour of packing later and he was essentially ready, having brought emergency supplies in case the ones he'd brought wouldn't be sufficient.

Tugging his sandals on, he headed down. "I...really hope that nothing goes wrong on this mission." He said to himself as he made his way down the stairs.

Poor, poor Naruto.

He was supposed to meet at the gates with his teammates, so dutifully he made his way on time, though \ part of him was still a little bit rebellious remarked how if he showed up two hours late he'd be there before his teacher.

As he made his way towards the gates however it became apparent that Kakashi was actually capable at being on time, as she stood there, looking particularly haggard. "T...to early." She remarked, blearily swiveling her eye around, as though looking for some opportune place to catch some of the z's she'd normally be catching for being late.

Tazuna looked equally blurry, and particularly hung over. Naruto could smell him from where he was standing. Sasuke and Sakura both wore large packs for camping, and too Naruto's surprise also looked like they were completely awake and ready. Something he found hard to be considering how early in the morning they were up.

"Oi, finally, we can get started." Sasuke spoke up as she turned to leave without a word otherwise. The group did as followed, Kakashi taking out her normal reading material and Tazuna taking a swig. Running to catch up, Naruto quickly joined the group.

This was how their first endeavor into the world of ninja's began.

"Umm...so how long do we have to walk for?" Naruto managed to pipe up an unspecified amount of time later.

The now slightly awake Kakashi looked over at him. "Your not tired already are you Naruto?"

He appeared alarmed, his ears shooting up "N-no, of course not! I was just wondering out of curiosities sake."

Kakashi nodded. "We'll be there by tomorrow if we keep this pace. Until then, just keep your strength up."

Naruto nodded hesitantly, although he couldn't help noticing that Tazuna was eyeing him oddly, looking him up and down. It made goosebumps run all over him. "T-Tazuna-san, do you have to look at me like that? It's creepy."

Tazuna didn't answer immediately, but he did speak up. "...so what's with the fox getup anyways?" Sasuke and Sakura both turned to the man, then Naruto.

"Yeah, I gotta admit, I've always wondered about that myself. I've never seen you take that costume off ever." Sakura spoke up.

"Yeah, I mean is it not enough your the worlds only boy ninja, but you have to dress like that too?" Naruto starred straight ahead, pale from the attention and quickly running out of excuses to explain what he was.

"There not a costume. Their real." Naruto swished his tail to emphasize. Tazuna and Sakura both wore looks that clearly summed the saying "WTF LAWL HAX" on their faces.

Sasuke didn't seem overtly fazed, being a little more observant. "Really, how'd you get a tail and fox ears? Is it tied to that weird red chakra you have?" Naruto's eye twitched at the mention of his chakra.

"W-well, it's um...a bloodline?" There was a pause.

"Well I suppose that would explain it-" Tazuna spoke up, but was quickly cut off by Sasuke.

"That's completely absurd. As an Uchiha my family has records of every clan or family who has any form of doujutsu. And nowhere in the scrolls does it list a doujutsu that gives you fox fur, ears and tails."

"Um...your records suck?" Naruto asked hesitantly, although he wished he had shut up as he was fixed with two equally lethal looks.

"Are you suggesting Naruto that the records both my family, the other clans and every Hokage from first to last, wasn't capable at finding someone with a fox tail?" Sasuke ground out, Sakura nodding with her every word.

"Wha, no, well, what I mean was..." Naruto trailed off. "Its kinda personal."

Sakura and Sasuke looked alarmingly unhappy at this, but Tazuna surprisingly sighed. "I see. I take it your mother was tricked into marrying a fox demon? I've heard old folk tails about things like that." Sakura and Sasuke frowned at the old man, but Naruto spoke up first hesitantly.

"I...never knew my family. And I wasn't born like this."

This left the group silent for several seconds, prompting Kakashi to speak up. "That's enough you three. You can grill Naruto later, but for the time being just be quiet and leave him alone. We all have secrets." Sasuke looked put off, but Sakura unsurprisingly opted to raise her disgruntlement.

"But sensei, we as a team work best if we know each other, and frankly Naruto's...appearance leaves many questions that could in the future hinder our team."

Kakashi rolled her eyes _'Oh brother.' _"Regardless Sakura, it's Naruto's business and if he sees fit to-"

The clatter of chains tearing flesh split the trees as a lifeless body fell too the ground, a copy of an orange book thudding to the dirt.

"KAKASHI-SENSEI!" Sakura screamed in shock.

Her slayers whirled around, garbed in black, gray and green camouflage, and muttering, "One down," under their breaths. A single metal chain swathed with blood connected the two sisters, the Kanji for demon on their horned forehead protectors gleaming in the light.

"Two down." Naruto had frozen up completely, not that he would have had time to move considering the speed the Chuunin ninja moved at. The chain swung across the ground, up and was centimeters from his face.

_*Schwing*_

_*Thud*_

"You little brat!" The sisters' whirled on Sasuke, who had single handedly stopped the possible murder of Naruto. Sasuke replied by twirling her kunai, before speeding towards them. Jumping high, she fell in front of her opponent who reared back to strike. Sasuke disappeared in the instant she struck, leaving her opponent bewildered.

"Bunshin?" She had the time to speak before a hard kick got her back sent her rolling away.

"Sister!" Her counterpart shouted, but was abruptly interrupted by a leaping roundhouse kick from Sasuke, which in turn knocked her away like her sibling. Sasuke landed in a crouch in front of the still very much unmoving Naruto.

Turning her eyes locked onto blue. "You afraid to move, scaredy-fox?" Naruto blinked before the situation came back to him.

"Look out!" Naruto leapt forwards, pushing Sasuke out of the path of a massive metallic claw, he was sent rolling away, gasping in pain clutching his arm.

"Little brats good as dead. And now it's your turn." The sister raised her arm and brought it harshly down on Sasuke's frail body, rendering it in shreds.

Her shreds promptly burst into smoke. "Kawa-" She has the time to say before another roundhouse sent her rolling next to her sister, both standing up and eyeing their opponents.

"Sister? A change in plans."

"Agreed."

There was a snap of the chain, and the two dashed in an oval pattern around Sasuke, away from Naruto, towards Tazuna and Sakura.

"This is it!" they cried in unison as poised to deliver the killing blow.

"That's enough of that."

Instant defeat, the two found themselves the welcoming doormats to the very much alive Hatake Kakashi's feat.

"Y-your alive sensei!" Sakura cried happily, previously on the defense in front of the terrified Tazuna.

"Well of course, why wouldn't I be Sakura? I mean all they did was attack my substitute." She indicated towards the pile of woodchips that was just her corpse a moment ago.

"I must admit, for the famed demon sisters of Kirigakure, you two aren't exactly holding up too your reputation." The two at her feet made no response, as they were unconscious. "Hand me some wire Sasuke." Sasuke did as she was told as Naruto trotted over clutching his injured arm.

A short period of tying later and the two were restrained. Groggily sister one looked up, a trail of blood down her forehead and cheek forcing her to squint. "Y-your....Hatake...Kakashi..."

Kakashi gave a smile with her eye as she kneeled down to there level. "If your wondering, I knew you two were going to attack the moment I saw the puddle." The other four raised eyebrows.

"Puddle?" Naruto/Sasuke/Sakura asked.

"Yes, you didn't notice the puddle, the one that was there despite there being no rain for several days now?" The sisters heads fell in shame, such an obvious hole in their trick had felled them from the start.

"Regardless, I needed to be sure of who the real target of this assassination was anyways. Tazuna-san-" Kakashi stood up and turned in one motion, sending Tazuna step back.

"N-now hold on a second here!" He said waving his hands defensively while Kakashi walked forwards, not changing her pace for a moment. Soon Tazuna found himself boxed between her and a tree, the Genin present peaking around there teacher in confusion. "This mission has just shot from C to B, and you knew this was going to happen." Tazuna gulped loudly.

"F-forgive me!" He threw himself too the ground at her feet, head hung as low as possible.

Kakashi raised her eyebrow before laughing nervously. "D-dammit, of all times to be right."

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"-And that's how I got a man like Gatou after me." Tazuna lamented solemnly, no longer kneeling.

Kakashi had her hand to her chin, contemplating her answer. "...you're an idiot. The village offers political missions that are at reasonable prices might I add. Considering the poverty of the Land of Waves she'd more then gladly sent an outreach to protect someone like you from a thug like Gatou."

Tazuna to say the least was dumbstruck by her answer. "T..that's...well..." Kakashi interrupted however.

"Regardless, now we're in the hole. With you penniless, and us already on the mission, we're technically duty bound to see it through, despite the mounting odds against us."

Surprisingly Tazuna lit up. "Y-you are?!"

Kakashi flashed a dangerous look towards him. "Yes, I am. That doesn't mean I will. Ninja's have no real duty, if you wanted that you should have hired Samurai."

Tazuna face-faulted.

"B-b-b-but-!"

Again he was cut off. "One of my Genin is already mauled and more then likely fatally poisoned. You've put three children and me in the path of death, because you have not the money to hire someone who's capable. Normally I would have forcibly taken you back to the village for interrogation of some sort, but considering this is my Genins first real mission-

"I think it fair they decide." Kakashi turned to them, her emotions a complete one-eighty. Naruto actually fell back on his butt, while Sakura just looked completely floored.

Sasuke smirked. "Well? What are we waiting for? The Land of Waves awaits." Sasuke said with a dismissive wave in the direction of the demon sisters. They in return growled.

"I agree with Sasuke-kun!" Sakura cried without hesitation. This of course left one voice un-added. The four turned to the last member, who was in the midst of rubbing his arm painfully.

"Naruto? Your thoughts?"

Naruto looked up from his wound surprised. "Huh? Me?" Kakashi nodded while Tazuna grew tenser as the seconds ticked by.

"W...well..." He trailed off, looking down. _'This is my chance. I'm already in way over my head, and to top it off, I'm poisoned! This mission is too hard. All I have to say is no!' _He felt his answer welling up in him, when he abruptly stopped himself. _'B...but if I do that, aren't I as bad as everyone's been saying? Does the strongest ninja run away? Does the Hokage run away? No, they'd face it head on and win. But could I do that? Its practically suicide._

_'...but...that's the point. Get strong or die trying. This is the only thing I wanna be, and if I can't face my fears head on, then why am I trying this in the first place!'_ His answer was clear.

"I'LL....do it?"

Kakashi frowned at his response. "Do what?"

"Go through with the mission. I won't run away." Naruto stood resolutely.

Kakashi didn't respond for a moment, before she sighed. "You all have no idea what your in for then. Tazuna-san, count yourself lucky. Extremely lucky." Kakashi added with an edge. Tazuna simply smiled broadly, chuckling despite how grave his situation still was.

"But there is still one problem on our hands." Kakashi said ominously.

Sakura asked first. "And that would be?"

Kakashi pointed towards Naruto, who blinked. "Have you three forgotten? Naruto, you're poisoned. As in you could drop dead any second."

Naruto's eyes widened. "Oh god no! I don't want to die! WhatdoIdowhatdoIdowhatdoIdo?!" He cried, running in circles.

"Umm, the first thing you should never do if your poisoned is run around screaming. The movement accelerates your blood, which carries the poison." Sasuke spoke up "Its first year stuff dead last."

Naruto abruptly stopped moving, remaining as still as a statue. Which made the fact he was in a particularly uncomfortable position that much more impressive.

"...right. Well, we should at least head back to the village for some antidote then." Naruto shook his head however, something that surprised her.

"What is it?" Kakashi asked him curiously.

"I have some antidote in my bag. I wasn't sure what to bring, so I essentially prepared everything across the board. Good call huh?" He said exasperatedly.

"Yes, although your cure depends on the poison in your system. I don't suppose you two have any thing you'd like to add." She sent a menacing look towards the incapacitated sisters.

"I-its from a local root. Wolfsbane." The sister on the right spoke up, her sister giving her a surprised look. "Oh don't look at me like that. I'd rather she just leave us alone." A swish of her hair ended the conversation.

"Right." Kakashi nodded. "This should be enough then." Kakashi indicated towards her student. "You just have to bleed the poison out then."

Naruto paled. "B-bleed it out?" He said weakly.

"Well yeah, again Naruto, that's poison 101." Sakura spoke up.

He gulped. "I don't know about that..." He trailed off.

Kakashi sighed. "Well if that's the case we'll just have to head back then." She stood up.

"If we start moving, we can make it too the village by nightfall."

There was slit of a kunai grating out of a pouch, and a quick spray of blood. "N-Naruto!" The four present were suddenly taken aback as Naruto drove a kunai deep enough into his hand it almost poked out the other end.

"B-bleed it out right? Like this?" He looked pale, his ears were down, but he was smiling.

Kakashi found it hard not to curse her luck. Figures it was the one time she'd want to run away the least courageous of them would pipe up. Oh well...

"Umm, that's great Naruto. Except if you keep that up you'll bleed to death."

Naruto blanched. "Oh no!"

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Hours later, Naruto's hand had stopped itching, and for the most part the wound was practically gone. Something that hadn't escaped Sasuke, who decided to withhold questions until she had the boy alone. God she wished she never thought that line ever again. Ever.

"Does this trail go on much farther?" Sakura piped up exasperatedly. They had traveled several miles that day, though the exact time was unsure due to the sun being hidden behind clouds. The day still had a few hours left, but still, they were traveling later then Kakashi had been hoping.

"We'll get there when we get there. I know it's a long walk, but it could be worse. We could have had to run." Kakashi knew how THAT felt.

"Naruto how's your hand? You haven't been feeling anything out of the ordinary have you? I wouldn't want you to drop dead because of a miscalculation." Naruto shook his head with a "huh." "Okay, good then. Your hand okay?"

"You don't have to worry about me so much sensei." Naruto blushed, looking down.

Kakashi smiled under her mask _'Too cute...' _"I care about my entire squad. Its my job as a Jounin teacher."

Naruto's blush faded, but he still held onto that. "T-thank you." He said mostly to himself.

"Tazuna-san, the boatman mentioned this area is in control of Gatou?" Kakashi suddenly spoke up.

"Hm? Yes, Gatou is unfortunately in control of almost anything and everyone who comes in and out of the village, hence why we had to be smuggled in. My home shouldn't be TOO far from here." He added absently, taking a bite of a cracker he had hidden in his pocket.

"Good, it'll be nice to get off my feet." Sakura sighed.

Naruto's ear twitched. "What the...?" He added, swiveling his head over to a bush. He stopped for a moment as it rustled, placing a precautionary hand on his kunai. Nothing happened, before a rabbit hopped out of the bush absently. It was white. Naruto sighed as he put his kunai back, his ears perking too there usual demeanor.

They shot back up a moment later.

"Whats that whirring noise?" Was all the time he had to say.

"GET DOWN!" Kakashi dog-piled the lot, moments before Naruto was alerted to the noise. Like a massive propeller a blade of incomparable size swung across the clearing, slicing over them so quickly Naruto found it difficult to believe they'd been saved. The sword imbedded into a tree behind them a second later.

That was the least of there problems.

Getting up slowly, Kakashi remained in a hunched stance, while her students looked around warily. Then they heard the voice. "Hatake Kakashi. This truly is an honor."

Kakashi deceptively relaxed, though didn't go as far as sheathing her kunai. "You must be...Momochi Zabuza, the devil of Kirigakure." Kakashi acknowledged ominously to the voice. Abruptly in a blur a figure materialized on the handle of the imbedded sword. "My my, my reputation precedes me. As does your own it seems."

She stood on thin but muscular build. Gray skin, likely from years inside of a damp and mist covered environment added to her spooky demeanor. Her upper body was practically naked save for several thin swaths of bandages covering her chest and face, masking her appearance and protecting what little modesty she chose too keep.

Her headband remained turned to the side of her head, spiky black hair swishing with each subtle breeze. Her eyes were dark, dark brown, almost black, framed against the pale gray of her skin and white bandage mask drew an even more formidable image. On her legs large, and surprisingly loose pants were worn, a blue-purple mix with a divided pinstripe pattern on hem giving her slim build an even slimmer look.

Even without the sword she looked terrifying. Crouching down and wrapping one bandaged hand around the handle, she proceeded to pull out a book, flipping through it several pages before stopping. "Ah, here we are. Hatake Kakashi, otherwise known as "Copy Cat Kakashi."" Zabuza chuckled hollowly under her mask, deep and husky.

"I've often heard of you, Kakashi." Naruto looked at his sensei with new aspiration, realizing he was a student of someone recognized by a person as terrifying as this.

"I must say I am familiar with you as well. A shame you failed in your coup d'etat of Kiri." Surprisingly Zabuza twitched, before her continence came back.

"That...well...I'm not out of the picture yet shall we say..." Zabuza trailed off.

"On a different note, the man behind you is the one I'm hired to kill. I find it unlikely you'll let me kill him, but it's still curious to ask." Kakashi turned her head too the side, sort of a 'what do you think?' look. Zabuza chuckled "Yeah, I thought so. I'm afraid your heads are forfeit for such an answer." The entire clearing suddenly erupted in terror.

_'Killing intent.' _Kakashi acknowledged solemnly, looking back at her students to see how they'd handle some on a level such as this. All four present were frozen, starring ahead with shrunken pupils. This impressed Zabuza surprisingly. She'd expected they kill themselves on the spot in the face of such terror. Still, the one in the blue shirt was looking twitchy...

Kakashi noticed this as well. Sasuke's kunai was becoming dangerously close to her throat, a clear sign she was snapping. Kakashi took action. "You guys." Her voice drew them briefly out of the panic, Naruto in particular taken a sudden heaving sigh. "Its okay. I'm here to protect you and Tazuna." Kakashi said with a fake smile, she was truthfully unsure how this would turn out.

But she refused to look weak to her students. Not in the face of an A-class criminal like Zabuza. Speaking of which, Kakashi found it prudent to take her game up a notch. Her hand reached up and with a twitch of the wrist her headband was up, unveiling her most prized weapon.

"Well, if your all done pissing yourselves-" Zabuza and her sword disappeared in a blur.

"I'll be making good on my promise." Her voice, low and cold spoke in Kakashi's ear. Moments later her head sailed across the clearing.

"Che, one down already. I hope she taught you punks better then she herself was-" Zabuza stopped mid-address to Naruto and the rest of his team, finding it difficult to speak with a knife in her back.

"You really should know better then to turn your back on an opponent, Zabuza." Kakashi in turn whispered in her ear. Zabuza's eyes rolled back into her head.

...Before she burst into water. Kakashi took a step back instinctively as the puddle sloshed to the ground. "Mizu Bunshin." Kakashi cursed. "Everyone, take positions around Tazuna. Protect him with your life!" Her students nodded, Naruto gulping solemnly to himself. This was a REAL life or death battle, with fifty-fifty odds.

The clearing was still, terrifyingly so. Then a splash from the lake made all four swiveled their heads. "I must admit, I'm unimpressed so far Kakashi." Zabuza remained stationary at the center of the lake, in an odd pose, both hands in a tora-seal but one raised straight up while the other at her front as though she prayed with one hand. "This shouldn't take to long. **Kirigakure no jutsu.**"

The clearing filled with mist, thick and incomparable. A foot in front of you was all that was visible, and Kakashi knew right there, Zabuza had likely won the fight. "_I'm a master of silent killing." _Her disembodied voice filled the clearing. _"I can hear you, all of you, and I will find you without you ever knowing. You're all as good as dead. Just give me the bridge builder, and you can all go home."_

Kakashi frowned. "That's not an option Zabuza, and you know it." Deep, dark, almost unnatural chuckling filled the clearing, and Naruto found it hard not to faint.

_"Yeah, I figured as such. So are you going to come out and try to find me, or wait until I find you?" _Zabuza's voice like cold chinking metals made the groups skin crawl.

"...that won't be necessary." Kakashi inclined to herself, spinning her kunai absently. "This is ill advised, but don't follow me. Take triangle formation around Tazuna, and whatever you do, don't engage the enemy. You'll die." Kakashi stopped spinning her kunai. "This will be over quickly." Kakashi faded into the mist.

The silence was deafening. "W...what do we do now?" Naruto hesitantly spoke up, a tiny whisper that the others just barely caught. His tail was tense and hung low like his ears.

Sasuke spoke up "We do what we're ordered to. Don't worry Tazuna-san, we're not all cowards like Naruto." Naruto flinched a little at the remark, though Tazuna didn't respond to Sasuke's statement, he opted to remain silent.

A clang of metal on metal rang through the clearing, making all four twitch.

"They've started." Sakura whispered. There was a pause and another clang. Briefly a flash in the distance was seen, probably the steels sparking against each other. This continued for some time, the only noise being metal on metal, and the ghostly swish of the mist.

Then...the freezing air parted, and the squad found it difficult to breath.

"Seems I was correct in my overestimation Kakashi, if this is all you can do." Zabuza chided too her imprisoned enemy, who glared menacingly from within her confines. Kakashi was entrapped in a perfect sphere of water, waves pulsing along its surface. Zabuza's hand was up to its wrist in the globe, obviously acting as the medium for the technique.

"Seems now all that's left is too kill off the weaklings till you drown Kakashi. Now for the fun part." Zabuza's other hand rose up, and took what appeared to be half a seal. At her feat a clone rose, cracking her neck and swinging her blade behind herself. "I'll try and make this quick." she said, while walking across the surface.

Naruto's grip tightened on his kunai. He'd been right about one thing; this was a life or death battle.

And most likely he was about to die. Zabuza took note of him in particular, stopping in confusion for a moment. "Well well, a male ninja? I've been around a long time, and I've never seen that before. And...seems you have some other odd assets about you as well-" She disappeared from view, all three taking a step back. It was an unnecessary maneuver.

"Wow, are these real?" A familiar and terrifying voice asked over Naruto's shoulder. He slowly swiveled his head, and found it difficult to breath under the oppressive gaze of one Momochi Zabuza. Zabuza's lazy yet interested look hovered over for a moment, to which Sasuke took as an opening. Leaping up he prepared to drive a kunai into her skull.

The roundhouse kick sent her sprawling back before in the same swing nailed Naruto in the face, sending him spinning a much farther distance, separating him from the group.

"NARUTO!" Sakura cried in shock, kunai twitching in terror as the woman gained a relaxed stopper, turning one killing-intent rich eye towards her.

"I'll be back for you two in a moment." Sakura couldn't move as there adversary stalked towards the blonde.

Naruto spat blood onto the ground before groggily trying to get up, his head spinning. "O...ow." He ground out, before looking forwards he got a good view of a pair of sandals.

"Well you are a curious one aren't you?" A hand violently grabbed him by the tail, and with ease hefted him above the ground.

"L-let go of me!" Naruto waved wildly, though Zabuza wasn't affected in the least.

"Surprisingly soft. I might have to keep you alive brat. You could fetch me a fair amount of cash." A chill ran up and down Naruto's spine at the mere thought of being sold off. "Now just be a good little brat and fall asleep." Zabuza reached for his throat.

"GAAAH! LITTLE BRAT!" Zabuza growled throwing Naruto away before gripping the hand he'd bit surprisingly hard into. "You'll regret that." Zabuza cracked her knuckles.

"Y-yeah, well, better dead then what you have planned anyways!" Naruto feigned bravery _'Oh man, I am so totally screwed!'_

"I can smell the fear on you, brat. Your friends can't help you, hell, I doubt they would. Just give up, who knows, you might end up somewhere nice, though I doubt it considering you bit my hand." Farther away Sasuke was beginning to stand up, looking over before her eyes widened in shock. Zabuza was not a foot from Naruto now, and looking pretty pissed.

Then Zabuza stopped, seeing Naruto's Hiate laying on the ground. "They hand these out to everyone, even little tykes like you. In my day..." Zabuza trailed off, letting the last bit hang there. "In my day, you would have already stained your hands with blood." Zabuza covered her one eye, while the other leaked insanity and killer-intent. "You have no idea how unworthy you are to wear this, do you?" Zabuza's foot crashed down on the metal, chipping it.

Something snapped in Naruto.

"Y...your right." He admonished, his head hanging. Sasuke, Sakura and Tazuna were taken aback by Naruto's acknowledgement.

_'Naruto...your not...actually giving up this quickly are you?' _Sasuke asked herself, though the question was directed at Naruto. Sakura shook her head, and Tazuna remained silent.

"Good to see you know your place." Zabuza smirked. It was short-lived.

"But I won't be forever." All present sent him a look of confusion. "I-I'm a coward, but I refuse to give up. One day I will be able to wear my Hiate with pride, because I'll be worthy, like everyone else. But if that's gonna happen...then I gotta live through this!" Naruto's chakra violently pulsed suddenly, something that took Zabuza aback.

"The hell-"

A foot connected with the side of Zabuza's face, before her body broke down into water, swishing too the ground. "...I'll be taking this back, arigatou." Naruto said, picking up his Hiate, and wrapping it around his head. With a twitch the knot was complete. "Okay...now for the hard part." Naruto sighed, his chakra flare diminishing into nothing. A short trot later and he was reunited with the group.

"Um...we have to get sensei out right away." Naruto said. "I think I have an idea, but I'll need your help Sasuke." Sasuke frowned, but nodded. Naruto was full of surprises today.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Huh, guess your students aren't just full of crap, but a few surprises as well, Kakashi."

Kakashi's eyes narrowed, though on the inside she was surprised. _'Naruto's kick KILLED that clone. Though its a tenth of Zabuza's strength...I might have underestimated him, just like everybody else.' _Kakashi sighed, or would have if she could breath. She had about three minutes of air left.

She could hold her breath a long time.

"Seems that they need a bigger challenge. What do you say to maybe a dozen clones now?" Zabuza smirked as Kakashi's head spun, or tried to while her eyes widened. "Yeah, they'll probably-" Movement out of the corner of her eye drew her sentence to a silence however. "What the hell are they doing?" Zabuza asked in confusion.

Kakashi really wasn't sure either.

Sasuke leaped high over the water, and with her full body weight fired a fuuma shuriken. The windmill shaped blade careened over the water, spitting up water in its wake. Zabuza was unimpressed however, easily ducking under the blade while keeping her arm securely inside the bubble. She then realized her mistake.

Because in its shadow was another shuriken. _'When did she throw a-'_ Zabuza cursed mentally, before jumping an instant later over the blade, this time almost pulling her hand completely free of the jutsu. "Have to do better then that." Zabuza admonished in the air. Then a whistling from behind caught her attention.

Curling her head over her shoulder she narrowly ducked something like a crimson semi-transparent fist, rolling away from the massive concussive wave that erupted on the water. "Dammit all to hell...." The chakra had nicked her face, causing a small trickle of blood to run down its side. This DEEPLY irritated her.

Naruto floundered to the surface of the water, happy that the Henge had gone off so well. If Zabuza hadn't jumped, he was pretty sure he wouldn't have been able to maintain the jutsu, and the surprise attack from behind would have been ruined...

Kakashi pulled herself free of the water, gasping in life. Her entire body was soaked, hair in complete disarray. Naruto swam over to her, checking to see if she was all right while Sasuke maneuvered around the perimeter of the lake. "...Naruto..." Kakashi said softly.

His ears perked up as he sloshed into hearing range of her. "Yes sensei?"

There was a clang of metal before Naruto realized what had happened. Zabuza's blade hung mere centimeters away from his face, held at bay by three kunai in Kakashi's hand. The first was fully sawed through while the other two remained intact. "...you've done well. As for you-" Kakashi, despite the resistance from Zabuza's blade, raised her kunai until they were shoulder height, fixing Zabuza with a glare.

"-No one touches my students." Zabuza back flipped away from a back flip that would have likely dislocated her skull. Zabuza was unfazed at this turn of events however, instead watching her opponent with interest. Kakashi now stood in a crouch, hand clasping her headband. Then with a twitch of her wrist her other eye was revealed.

"...So this is the true Copy-cat? My, the Sharingan certainly lives up to its reputation." Zabuza remarked lazily, twirling her blade onto her shoulder. Naruto meanwhile was confused to what they were talking about, as well as his teachers strange eye condition.

"...Naruto?" Kakashi asked, turning her head and giving him a perfect view of it.

Scarily, he was a little hypnotized by its rotating toumas. "Y-yeah?" He asked nervously again

"Head for the shore, I'll see you in a moment." Kakashi said. Naruto nodded, doggy-paddling away.

Zabuza smirked. "As if I'd let annoying prey like that escape." Her blade spun around to her other hand and she sped forwards.

The mid-air round house from Kakashi was not expected. "Gauh!" Zabuza's stomach felt as though it had collapsed under the kick, though the pain of the next kick distracted her from this. Using her momentum Kakashi spun fast around, planting another devastating roundhouse into Zabuza's cheek.

She spun out, blade and all over the water, rolling across and laying on the surface, chakra momentarily disabled. The lake rippled.

Kakashi waited for her opponent to get back up. Not out of obligation, but the fact she doubted Zabuza was so easily bested. She was right. "...Godamn bitches..." Zabuza spat, taking stance on the water as though it was as solid as concrete. "Your all gonna pay for the crap you've put me through-youyou assholesassholes!"

Zabuza took a step back. "...The hell are you up to you?"

"...The hell are you up to you?" Kakashi mirrored in perfect time.

Zabuza growled. "...you die now." Taking a spread-stance, her hands folded together and blurred into movement. **"Suiton: Suiryuudan no jutsu!" **A beast of chakra suddenly exploded from the surface, bending and twirling the dragon reared back.

From the sidelines Naruto crawled onto land, just barely avoiding the tide riding in from the massive dragon. Looking up his eyes caught Sasuke's, fixated on the battle that was unfolding. "This...this is a whole other kind of fight." She spoke aloud to herself.

Naruto caught this however, walking over to his companion while shaking off, his eyes not leaving the jutsu. "Yeah..."

Meanwhile on the waters surface, Kakashi smirked. "Two can play at this game. **Suiton: Suiryuudan no jutsu!"** another dragon, identical to Zabuza's rose up. There was a pause, then they met, water crashing in a thunderous roar. The waves rose up and down, the surface became a tumult of rapids, and through it all Kakashi and Zabuza remained unmoving.

"Seems those eyes of yours really are something. But still, there nothing on such a-"

"Trashy_trashy_ nobody_nobody_!" Zabuza took a step back as Kakashi finished her sentence in perfect rhythm again. "Stop that you-"

"-Ludicrous moron!" Kakashi snapped, over-riding Zabuza. If she wasn't already wet and freezing, Zabuza would have started sweating.

_'How did she know...what I was going to say? Has she gotten into my head? Or...can she see the future?'_ While she was asking for some kind of rebuttal, Zabuza threw caution to the winds.

"Seems you can see the future, eh Kakashi?" Zabuza mocked.

Kakashi however went with it. "Yes, and I have seen your future Zabuza. Your dead." From her left pouch Kakashi reached around, pulling out two small metal rods. With a clank and a twist they came together, before elongating into a poled weapon.

**"HENGE!"** The tool burst into smoke, and a moment later it transformed into...a sword. Kubikiri Houcho. Zabuza balked, before becoming angry. "You think a mere copy can hold up to my sword, the sword I've trained since my academy days to be my ultimate weapon?! Bitch, your gonna die right now!" Zabuza leapt.

With a clash the two met, Kakashi easily copying Zabuza's attack. "Thats-" The dark-haired Rounin was cut short however when Kakashi spun around with the blades weight and sent a long and hard kick her way. Zabuza's sword blocked the kick, skidding across the water. Looking through her blades small curve in the edge, Zabuza had a moment before her enemy engaged.

"You-" She rolled around an overhead smash "-are-" she blocked another swing around "-copying-" Kakashi rolled over Zabuza's shoulder, bring the blade up and through Zabuza's back. There was a large gash of blood, before her enemy exploded into water. "-my fighting style." Zabuza said from a few feet away, breathing heavily and soaking wet. There was a small trickle of blood now running down her arm, a sign of a hasty replacement.

Kakashi smirked. "Its not that complicated, and I've tangled with mist-nin before."

Zabuza growled. "Well then have a taste of my ultimate technique you bitch!" Zabuza's hands whirled through what could only be described as the longest, most complicated set of seals Naruto and Sasuke had ever seen. "Take this: **Suiton-"**

**"Daibakufu no jutsu!"**

Zabuza in shock had no time to react as Kakashi finished her technique before her. "But how-"

The cyclone of water connected with bone breaking force, drilling into her body with the power greater then white water rapids. She spun; her body suspended in the exact center, unable to move as g-forces whirled her like a top. The pain tripled when her soaking wet and broken body crashed back-first into several trees, clearing through two before slamming back-breakingly hard into the third.

Zabuza slowly slid down the three, before slumping. Kubikiri Houcho fell to the ground with a clang.

Kakashi stood tense for several seconds, waiting to see if she'd explode into smoke. When nothing happened she let out a sigh. "That...was WAY to close." Her sword exploded into smoke before the poles retracted. Kakashi looked over at her students, and began to walk. "Meh, I guess I'll have to explain my eye to-" The chakra exhaustion hit her.

With a splash she fell on her side, thankfully allowing her way to breath.

Naruto and Sasuke ran across the shore towards her, panic stricken. "W-what do you thinks wrong?" Naruto asked, nervously turning her over.

Sasuke sighed, "Chakra exhaustion most likely, judging from..." Sasuke stopped, something that unnerved Naruto.

"S-Sasuke?" She didn't answer, instead staring down at the semi-closed but still unconscious eye of Kakashi. _'Why does my teacher...have the Sharingan.'_

Anger started to boil inside Sasuke, something that didn't escape her blonde teammate. "S-S-S-Sasuke-san, you're...are you okay?" He asked nervously. Sasuke's eyes snapped up in a scowl, before she turned away.

"Its nothing. Just grab her legs; I'll get her arms. We should be able to carry her. We need shelter though."

Neither noticed a lithe figure descent onto Zabuza's frame and disappear into the waters surface.

"Sakura-san! Tazuna-san! Its safe to come out now!" A short distance away Sakura and Tazuna crept out of several bushes, looking around carefully. "Okay, we're coming out-HOLY CRAP SENSEI!" Sakura ran off towards their teacher, looking her over.

"Chakra exhaustion." Sasuke repeated.

This didn't seem to relieve Sakura however. "She could still die though." She was familiar with this condition, the teachers at the academy specifically instructing to avoid this situation.

"Don't worry, my house is close by. She'll be okay." Tazuna said. The three nodded, Sasuke and Naruto taking there sensei stretcher style.

They trekked into the dissipating mist together.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

**Whoo, its super late, and I should have gone to bed, but it was worth it to finish this. A second update because I felt like it.**

**Cutting strings will happily be the next story updated for all of you who haven't died of asphyxiation. Kind of rewarding to think you've waited this long. You shan't be disappointed.**

**I have a poll for all of you, should Naruto ultimately get Zabuza's sword? I could go either way with this.**

**Also, alternate Sasuke thought:**

_'Why does my teacher...have to read so much porn...?'_

**REVIEW! I WORKED HARD ON THIS CHAPTER!**


	6. Those who are Precious

**The idea of Docile was one simply put together to see if I could. I didn't do it to make any particular point, I just simply wanted to see if I could pull a fanfic so obscure that even my readers question at times why their reading it (Even more obscure then Cutting Strings).**

**I'm happy to say that this has so far been fairly successful. But how successful, we shall see...**

**Oh, and also, yeah I finally updated. So yeahz.**

**READ FOR THE SAKE OF TOASTER STRUDDLES(sp?)!**

* * *

The house was almost silent, the occasional creak of the wood the only thing that permeated the room. The softwood floor and fairly bare walls gave the room a Spartan look, the sleeping mat being the only real add on to the décor. On the wall a picture was hung, one of a recognizable but younger looking Tazuna and two others. A third was only partially visible; the corner he stood in was torn out.

The bed stirred, its large and comfortable blanket drawn all the way up to the sleeper's head, so that only the top of his blonde spiky scalp was visible. The ears of the sleeper twitched at the steady creak of the house, but soon relaxed to there usual mid position, nothing really alerting them. Naruto sighed in his sleep contently, for the first time in over two days he was undisturbed.

Time passed by, his moment of solace going undisturbed. Before long however his ears perked up, as the bustling of the household life picked up.

First there was the lighter patter of a woman's feat through the house. It became apparent to Naruto's unconscious mind that this was Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami. Then the heavier footprints of Tazuna could be heard, coming down for whatever it is. The door opened and closed about forty-minutes later, the man apparently off to work. Two other presences made themselves know, the almost lack of noise and the slightly louder pair of footsteps closely behind signaling Sasuke and Sakura.

Naruto snuggled in close to his bed.

"...nnmmmm..." His eyes snapped open in alarm, slowly roving over to his left. There lay his sensei, sleeping soundly in what was essentially the same bed as he was sleeping. His heart almost stopped. His heart actually DID stop when Kakashi, giving no warning, rolled over onto him, lying comfortably at his side. _'OH....SNAP!'_

The seconds dragged on like minutes. _'Okay, so, you did go to bed pretty late last night. And it was dark. Maybe you accidentally stepped into the wrong bed? But how can you not notice another PERSON sleeping beside you?! GAW!' _Naruto resisted the urge to smack himself in the face because of his own idiocy. Gather what few wits he had, he vainly shifted between different plans of escape. These were unnecessary however.

"....huh...your surprisingly warm Naruto." Kakashi's voice breezed over the top of his head.

"...a..ah...sensei...h-how uh...was your sle-leep?" Naruto asked in his lowest voice.

"Pretty good. Awfully nice of you to 'volunteer' to watch me over me incase anything happened. Almost gentlemanly..." Kakashi trailed off with a sigh. Naruto just blinked for a moment, thoroughly confused.

"...crawled into the wrong bed huh?" Kakashi almost giggled.

"Y...yeah," Naruto replied sheepishly, his ears drooping at the embarrassing implication. "Has this happened to you before? You seem pretty relaxed," he then asked.

Kakashi didn't respond immediately, simply reveling in the deep sleep. "Oh its fine...if you'd tried anything you shouldn't have I would've broken your neck anyways. Jounin's generally can kill in their sleep" Naruto was twistedly enough comforted by this. At least his teacher knew it was an honest mistake.

"...Kakashi-sensei?"

"...yeah Naruto?"

"...can I get up now?"

"...no Naruto..."

"...hai..."

Trying his best, Naruto laid there until his teacher saw fit to relinquish her source of heat.

* * *

"Last night is something I'll never forget Sasuke-chan." Sakura rolled the chan part over her tongue.

Sasuke just looked at her like she was the plague of the earth. "If you insist on talking like that I will have to murder you in your sleep. This is your only warning." Sakura however continued to coo and invade her space, something that gained the ever-great ire of Sasuke. "What? What the hell did you mean last night? I went to sleep and..." there was a pause as Sasuke began to comprehend all possible out comes when she was asleep, much to her growing horror. "If you did anything that popped into that head of yours I swear Sakura..." Steam started to rise out of her nose.

"I didn't do anything Sasuke-chan!" Sasuke wasn't convinced however, grudgingly turning back to her breakfast. "...nothing you wouldn't want me to..." Sakura chuckled under her breath.

"What was that?!" Sasuke snapped.

"Oh nothing..." Sakura emotionally 180'ed.

"...this is going to be LONG trip if you keep this up you stalker..." Sakura feigned being put off.

"Mom what are they talking about?" The young Inari, Tsunami's son asked his mother, who chewed her food with a straight back and closed eyes.

"Nothing that you should worry about. Now eat your food. Or else." She added with a hint of malice.

"Y...yes ka-san." Inari said, biting into his food.

The door to the back slid open, revealing a well-rested Kakashi and a rather haggard looking Naruto. "Good morning everyone!" She hobbled over, her body still fairly weak from the battle with Zabuza. Slowly she sat down, inching the mat she took to the left of Tsunami. "I never got a chance to properly thank you for yesterday Tsunami. I can imagine it was rather stressful to have to suddenly house so many people."

Tsunami shook her head, setting her chopsticks to the side of her bowl. "Its fine, we knew you were coming. Though I am glad I know first-aid. Otherwise I don't think you would have been so well off."

Kakashi laughed. "Oh I think the job was satisfactory. You can be the doctor for me anytime." Naruto almost spat out his food, while Tsunami sent Kakashi an unamused look.

"I would appreciate if you refrained from that kind of humor in front of my son. He's very impressionable."

"Hey! I helped put some of the bandages on! How come only my mom gets to be the doctor!"

"Inari, eat your food." The killer-intent rolled off her in waves.

"Its not fair." Inari went back to chewing his food.

With a clunk Kakashi steadily picked at her simple breakfast, though didn't eat for whatever reasons she had. Naruto would have guessed it was mask related. Placing her chopsticks to the side, Kakashi suddenly struck conversation. "So, Zabuza's probably not dead." Whole room fell completely silent, a clatter of several pairs of chopsticks the only noise.

"W-wha?" Naruto suddenly choked out in a mortified hush.

"Yeah. She's probably not dead." Kakashi said with a level of neutrality, drawing a circle in the table with her good hand.

"Why do you think that is?" Sasuke asked, standing up, arms braced on the table.

"Well its simple. Because Zabuza's accomplice messed up."

The three ninja did a double take while Tsunami gave a confused look towards Kakashi. "Accomplice?"

"Yes. The Hunter-nin that appeared for extraction went outside of protocol and took the body away, something that no Hunter-nin would do. This leads me to believe this person was in fact an accomplice, who pulled Zabuza's ass out of the fire. As we speak she's probably recuperating for another strike."

This did not bode well for Naruto especially. "W-we're going to have to fight her AGAIN?!" Naruto was actually hyperventilating mentally.

"...yeah." Kakashi was surprised at this display of uncertainty.

"We're dead." Naruto said with complete finality, sitting back, face downcast.

"...I'm sick of you."

Everyone present looked at Sasuke, who had fixed Naruto with a look of pure distaste. "You...you are just completely gutless you know that? Here we are, at the end of all this, and your chickening out now. What happened to that dream of yours huh!?" Sasuke slammed the table with her hands. Naruto, Sakura and Inari jumped. "I'm sick of you, and all your cowardice. Your no teammate of mine." With a flourish she stepped out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

"What the hell did you do that for Naruto?!" Sakura leapt at him verbally and physically.

"GAAH!" Naruto could only dive backwards, Sakura now firmly gripping the front of his shirt.

"Why would you say something like that, you know we won before right?!" He could only raise his hands and nod. "Then we can win again, you idiot! Stop being so damn gutless, you're a ninja! SHANNARO!" Sakura leapt off him and gave chase to Sasuke, shouting "Sasuke-chaaaaan!"

The silence was deafening. Inari and Tsunami didn't look up, both more the a bit alienated by the display of team disgust. Kakashi was silent for a while, before turning to look at him. "I'm not going to say their right. Nor will I say their wrong. What I am going to tell you is this. Do you really think so little of yourself as you'd die so quickly?" Kakashi sat back to her food.

Naruto sat on the ground, his feelings deepening in depression and uncertainty.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kakashi's theory was being proven correct.

"What the hell am I payin' you tarts for?!" an old and fairly uncultivated accent asked without an ounce of respect.

On a bed, in a massive tree hideout, lay Zabuza, beaten within an inch of her life. Her arms were bandaged; her normal bandage wrappings had been replaced by actual gauze. By her bedside sat a semi-familiar hunter-nin, mask now removed. Behind it was the face of a woman who would make any man feel a certain pang in their chest. Unfortunately for them, she would probably be uninterested in an advance.

"Zabuza-sama needs time to recover. She was essentially thrust into the center of a miniature maelstrom, a feat that would have killed a lesser woman." Her voiced cooed out like a doves.

"I don't give a crap HOW it happened! You are supposed to be the BEST, and frankly, I AM MORE THEN DISAPPOINTED!" How a man as demure as Gatou could have such a loud voice was beyond her, perhaps it was the universe making up for his 'short' comings.

Which were many, and not at all improved with his voice. Sleaze was the word to describe him, with a capital 'S'.

"I was told you could handle this, and I expect you will. Or else. NO money! And you can forget about me 'nursing you back to health' to!" Gatou indicated to the two fairly burly looking thugs at his side. "I can assure you...sir...that we are more then capable at handling these lower ninja. It is a matter of time." Gatou huffed at the Hunter-nin's words as he advanced.

"That's what you keep telling me..." He stopped at the edge of the bed. Haku, the girl's name, narrowed her eyes. "But what are you going to give me as 'incentive' to keep me funding your little coup d'e-" In a flash his arm which had been reaching towards Zabuza was gripped like a vice. Gatou had a moment to gasp in surprise before it was fractured. "G-GAAH!" He howled, stepping back and grasping the injury.

"The likes of you do not TOUCH Zabuza-sama. Why she even allows scum like you to look at her is-"

"Haku. Stop it." Zabuza suddenly spoke up, drawing her apprentice's attention.

"Hai, Zabuza-sama. I am simply thinking of your best interests."

Zabuza rolled her eyes underneath her lids. "My apologize gentlemen, but take that as an example. We will kill the bridge builder and anyone who gets in the way. Like a super villain from a cartoon I underestimated them. Unlike a super villain I will not play fair, and I will not give then another opportunity for victory again."

"G-grah...s-see that you do-do that..." Gatou hacked out, exiting the room with a muffled, "She fractured the bone, the little..."

The room was quiet before Haku suddenly spoke up. "Zabuza-sama, I still fail to see what you have intended for all this money and why you would degrade yourself to working with such a...such a-"

"Low life scum-sack of a man? Because he has money. A _lot_ of money. When I have the funds to overcome Kirigakure, I will return and crush him for every indignity he has ever wrought. I will make things right Haku, right as they should have always been. Fate is on my side."

Haku frowned, but nodded. "But for now, you should rest Zabuza-sama. Here, let me switch your bandages."

"...fine, but if so much as a finger goes into my 'danger-zone' I will be displeased Haku."

"B-but Zabuza-sama..."

"No 'buts' Haku. Just do as I say."

"Fine..."

...rustle...

"...what did I JUST SAY?!"

* * *

"I have called you three here for a very specific reason. Since I have ample time to recover, and Zabuza is likely not going to show her face in a while, we're going to train." The three of them stared back at their Sensei with mixed looks. "What we're going to do...is tree climbing." The mixed looks switched to confusion and surprise.

"Tree climbing? Thats academy stuff sensei." Sakura spoke up.

"Ah, that is because this is special tree climbing. Watch." Kakashi's hands placed together into a seal before she slowly hobbled her way towards a tree. Three pairs of eyes looked up in astonishment as Kakashi started walking vertically up the trees bark, before limping out onto a branch to look at them boredly.

"This is tree climbing without your hands." Kakashi said with a wave.

"This should be good." Sasuke bit out coolly, though the hint of excitement in her voice couldn't be ignored.

"Hai Sasuke-chan, so cool!" Sakura said with flourish.

Naruto remained silent, but still he completely agreed with what they said, it was essentially beyond cool.

"It's an exercise in Chakra control. Using too much or to little chakra when doing a technique can be disastrous, so this exercise forces you to control your chakras. Try centering the chakra to your feet, and then walk up the tree."

Without hesitation Sasuke's seal flashed together and she dashed forwards. With several clunking noises she ran up the surface of the bark-

--before a splintering noise was heard and she back flipped away from tree, landing in a crouch. The bark she had stopped at was splintered in several places.

"See? Too much chakra and it breaks," Kakashi informed from her branch.

Sensing it was his turn from the looks the others gave him, Naruto hesitantly placed a seal together, before walking up to the tree. It was a lot taller then he had originally thought. "O-okay." His chakra suddenly blazed to his feet, to the point it was visible as a thin sheen of red on his feet. Taking a step back he suddenly bolted up the tree, his steps quick.

For a moment he was making headway, before he was suddenly forced to stop, feeling gravities full brunt. Stopping he slid down a couple feat. _'Crap!'_ Placing his hands in the seal, he attempted to stop this by channeling more into his feet.

At first it worked, so he relaxed for a moment. This led to him sliding back a few feet, and another hurried channeling. Again this continued for several minutes, before Naruto found himself hovering a few inches off the ground, his face a grimace of concentration.

"And as Naruto has demonstrated, if you don't use ENOUGH chakra you fall. Its all about your ability to control your chakras." Kakashi nodded sagely.

"Now I'll leave you to this. I'm gonna go see about a strong drink and some reading." Kakashi hobbled off with a giggle, leaving the three of them alone. Sasuke sent both of them a meaningful look before she stepped towards the tree she intended to train on. Sakura, not catching her meaning, directed an equally forlorn expression at Naruto. And Naruto just looked at them both as they went to train, feeling immensely put out.

-breaking his concentration and causing him to fall on his back with a resounding thud.

"U-ow." As no one paid him any mind, Naruto came to the conclusion that they were upset with him. Well, Sasuke anyway, with Sakura you couldn't be sure whether or not it was her actual opinion. But from her general reaction to him it probably was the same.

Sitting up, he sifted through ways to elevate his position in the group. Maybe a gift? No, they'd probably think he was trying to bribe them or something. He could apologize, but a churn in his stomach told him that it wouldn't do much good. It seemed cowardly. Maybe he could leave her alone then, and let her just not have to look at him for a while. Part of him could see that as running away.

But on the other hand, the look of genuine dislike masked with a cool look sent shivers down his spine. "I-I'm gonna go practice somewhere else okay?" The answer he received was a dull _thunk_ as Sasuke landed on the ground after falling off again. "A-alright then." He trekked off into the bush.

Sakura looked back on his retreating form on the ground. When she could no longer see him she looked to her left as Sasuke landed in the dirt, crouching before standing up. "Finally he's gone." Sakura half-sneered, testing to see whether she got a positive reaction from Sasuke. "I just can't stand him right now. It would seem he can actually take a hint." Sasuke didn't smile, but she sounded more relieved.

"So...wanna make out now that he's gone?" Sakura gave a hopeful look.

Sasuke held the bridge of her nose, exasperated at her teammates one-track mind. "Sakura...just...gaauh." Sasuke turned back to her training.

* * *

Less then a mile away in the dusted mist of the forest Naruto stood warily in front of the tree, eyeballing it worriedly. "Okay, so channeling chakra to your feet…"

He placed his hands in the corresponding seal, channeling the life giving energy to his soles.

"Check. Walking over to the tree-trunk…" He walked over.

"Check. Beginning walk…" He took a test step onto the surface of the tree. Preliminary testing showed there was a semi-adhesion to the surface. Deciding to test it, Naruto attempted to step onto the vertical surface.

He had little success.

With an _fwump_ he fell to the ground, butt first. "Ouff!" He groaned, nursing his possibly bruised rump. "Walking up the surface of a tree: No check." He frowned, frustrated at the development speed he was moving at.

"What am I doing wrong? I've channeled chakra to plenty of places before, why is my feat so hard?" Naruto wasn't aware that the soles of ones feet were one of the hardest places to channel chakra.

"What did Kakashi-sensei say again?" Thinking back, hand on his chin and ears swiveling, Naruto tried to recall what his sensei had said not twenty minutes ago.

_'Too much chakra and it breaks if you don't use ENOUGH chakra you fall.' _

His ears shot up, his eyes widening in realization. "DUH! Not enough chakra! If I just heap more on, then I'm more likely to stick!" Placing his fist in his palm, Naruto's resolution was set. Or as set as it could be for a guy like him.

Placing his hand in the seal, a deep frown of concentration set itself on his brow. The chakra whirled around his feet, flaring not unlike fire. _'Is this enough? Better be sure.' _Yet more chakra swam around his ankles until his feet were simply engulfed, hidden behind a sheet of red chakra. If that doesn't do it, then I'm pretty screwed as a ninja." Naruto wiped his brow. Taking a step towards the tree, he eyed the canopy above his head. "Now or never." With a swift kick he placed his foot on the trees hide.

-and was promptly blasted backwards, slamming his head into another tree-trunk, and was knocked unconscious instantly.

* * *

_...am I dead?_

_...Everything's all swimmy...its like a dream._

_...wait, if I'm dead, why does my head hurt so much? Did I go to hell? That sucks; I always thought I was a nice person. Maybe cowardice is a sin or something..._

_...well, at least devils are surprisingly beautiful..._

Naruto's groggy eyes looked up into the face of what could only be the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Dark hair accented softly by a pink, sleeveless Kimono, decorated with numerous flowers. A whicker basket lined with various herbs and mushrooms lay at her side as she brushed his hair out of his face, looking him over with a soft, but deep stare. "Ah...your awake." She cooed.

"A...ah...yeah." Was all his befuddled and possibly concussioned brain managed to slur out.

The woman was not taken aback however. In fact, she giggled softly. "Oh my, you are a strange one. Those ears and tail, your not a demon-fox trying to trick me to wed him are you?" She half-joked.

Alarm flooded Naruto's system. "N-no, of course not!" Sitting up wildly forced his slightly depressurized brain to slosh around, eliciting a splitting headache in him. "G-goooh!" He clutched his head, falling forwards.

"Sshshshsh! I was joking. You've sustained a head injury. I don't believe there's any major damage, but I would consult a doctor nonetheless. In the meantime, I have some headache remedies and some bandages. Hold still and lie back." She shifted him onto his back, his head resting on her lap as a makeshift pillow.

"T-thank you." Naruto said with a blush.

"It's what anyone would, or rather should, do." The maiden said softly, reaching into her basket and placing a mushroom down close to his mouth. "Here, eat this."

He took a nibble of it, munching quietly and trying not to look up, as he had a rather...interesting angle on his supposed angel. He had decided if anything, she was an angel. "Ah... it's not bad. And you're right, it is elevating my headache."

She smiled. "Certain mushrooms in the area have an aspirin substitute. Of course, these mushrooms are also known to be lethally poisonous when the reach maturity-"

Naruto shot up, clutching at his throat, before his headache spiked again, and he fell back onto her lap with a "Gaugh!"

The maiden simply smiled. "Yes, you are a very strange one." She smiled. Naruto lay back contently, or as contently as someone in as much pain as he was in could. Something roused him however, a soft tugging at his ears. He looked up. The girl was softly holding them, gently caressing them.

"U-um, if you don't mind-"

She looked at him surprised. "Ooh, sorry, I just couldn't resist. They seemed so real; I just had to feel them. Their very soft," she admonished.

"No, it's alright. I was just surprised. Though I shouldn't be, everyone seems to think I'm some kind of Otaku with a complex. Well, there real, those are my actual ears."

She frowned at this, unconsciously checking his hairline. "W-wow. That's amazing! How is that possible? Are you actually...?"

"A demon? No, although I do kinda look like a hanyou huh?" He joked nervously. "I'm not really allowed to talk about why I'm like this though. Kinda."

The maiden nodded. "You seem like a good person, so I'm content to not know your secret. And I'll have you know, you look like a cute little fox-boy."

Naruto blushed. "C-cute? Me? No, no, no, no. Everyone I know hates me right now; no way I'm cute. Everyone my age anyways."

She gave a concerned look. "Why would anyone hate you?"

"I...I'm kind of a coward." Her frowned deepened.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"I...I am generally afraid of, well, everything. And everyone I care about hates me for it. I don't know how to be brave, and I'm not strong enough to save anybody." He admonished, eyes downcast.

The woman's frowned elevated. "Oh, I see. You feel like it's a bad thing to be scared, and you don't want to see those you care about disappear."

Naruto looked up for a moment, digesting this, before nodding. "Y-yeah, that's it."

She smiled. "That's because you're smart. You're right. There is a lot to be afraid of in the world. But you also know the scariest thing: losing those you care about. And you know you must be strong to do that, protect those you care about so you may not lose them."

Naruto looked at her confusedly. "I'm right?"

She nodded. "Well for the most part. You're just not channeling your emotions healthily, and you're scared of things other than losing others. Once you have your precious people, then there is nothing to fear but that which would try to take them from you. Do you have precious people, fox-boy?"

He thought hard for several seconds, his contemplating face cause the beautiful girl to giggle softly. "Y-yes. Yes I do. There very precious," he said finally.

The woman nodded. "Then you should work as your life depends on it, and become strong for them. Become strong and brave, so that you can defend those you care about without fear!" She said.

Naruto, invigorated, sprang up. "You're right! I will become strong so that I-" And his headache kicked in. He fell back into her lap. "O-owie." He groaned.

"Okay, let's get you up. If you are staying with anyone I'd head back there. Have a good day young man." She said, standing up.

Naruto, steadily, joined her upright. "Thank you. For everything." She nodded, turning and walking away.

When she'd reached several paces, she suddenly turned around. "Oh, and if you were wondering, I'm gay." Before she turned around and walked off.

"Uh...buh...guh...huh?" Naruto managed to cough out, before turning around and heading off in a random direction, thoroughly confused.

* * *

**And just when he thought life was coming up Naruto.**

**Happy post-valentines day! As a gift, I finally remembered I uploaded some Cutting Strings and Jashin art to help with things. Simply click my homepage button on my FF profile, and it'll take you right there.**

**I can't believe I forgot to put this in another chapter!**

**And remember, review! Or you know, else. Else being some horrible threat like EXPLODING CHEESE-PONG BALLS! RANT-RANTY-RANT-RANT-RANT!**


	7. Truth

**(*NOTE: THE FOLLOWING CHAPTER IS NOT CURRENTLY EDITED*)**

**You wouldn't know it, but I really, REALLY wasn't happy with the original version of this chapter, so I went and completely redid it, just for that sake.**

**I'm sorry for the wait, it's just getting harder and harder for me to meet everything and still update at a reasonable pace. I know, excuses, but there no less valid!**

**But enough stalling! READ!**

_The adrenaline pumping through his veins made each second pass like an eternity. The scrape of her shoulder as it hit the ground thudded in the air with a hollow concussion; leaving him empty. All he could do was stare, stare at her as the life faded from her eyes even as he watched._

_The needles, sharp, razor thin and hurled expertly, darted out from her neckline, there small edges wreaking havoc on her organs. There hadn't been enough time to gasp for breath, a small part of him wondering, why, why she'd wasted her last moment chiding him, reminding him that it was his failure, his weakness that now physicly weighted itself infront of him._

_Her back laid to rest on the ground, her glazed eyes half lidded, no breath coming from her once moving form._

_"My body moved on its own; fraidy-cat."_

_The world was red._

* * *

The heavy scraping of rubber heals against bark was starting to grate on Sasuke's nerves. The last two hours had been nothing but that, scramble up the tree, hold for three seconds, backflip and try not to break an ankle. Repeat.

"Graaaaugh." Nursing her bruised ego was really distracting her progress she noted, the obvious frequency of new scratches at a specific spot on the three something that burned her. A lack of progress, to her, simply meant more weakness.

Which put her behind her comrade in arms, one Uzumaki Naruto, who despite being the proclaimed weakest member of his team, was technically surpassing her. Although not in the conventional sense, watching him scramble up the tree-trunk; practically on all fours, to scratch a gash accross the bark was infuriating to her, not because he was farther along, but because he was moving steadily.

Landing, in a crouch, Naruto proceeded to wipe the sweat that had begun to cloud his eyes, but the soft smile on his face told that he wasn't going to quit anytime soon. Just her luck, stuck in a forest with an idiotic coward that was slowly but surely catching up to her.

"Tch." She needed to steel herself. She wasn't going to let Naruto, Uzumaki Naruto, a _boy_, get under her skin. She was bigger then such petty things afterall. Taking a long, deep breath, Sasuke centred her chakra.

"Are you alright Sasuke-san?" The question piercing her mind like a ray of sunlight, Sasuke's eyes snapped open and she whirled on Naruto with a tad too much ferocity. "YES! Fine!" The way her eyes had bugged out and her pupils shrank caused Naruto to seemingly shrink into himself, taking several steps back. "A-ah, I see. Sorry to bother you."

"Yes, well, you should be." A small part of her could attest it was the chakra exhaustion setting in, but for the most part, ice-queen Uchiha Sasuke wasn't going to give such notions when someone like Naruto was concerned.

The silence that followed was an extremely uncomfortable one, Sasuke landing in yet another crouch to look at her handiwork, only to growl at the puny amount of ground she'd gained. Out of the corner of her eye she watched the deadlast scratch another margin, almost twice as big as hers from the last point he'd reached.

In a surprising flash of reason, Sasuke felt oddly compelled to ask for some advice. But she squashed that a moment later. That was admitting defeat in her mind, and she would not admit defeat.

Flooding her soles with as much chakra as she could muster, the girls feat clammered up the length of the tree until she felt her legs begin to burn and beyond. Her breathing became laboured enough that it seemed panicked, but her mind was working at a rate that made said breathing seem relatively normal. She could feel it, just a little further, just a little more and she'd be there and she'd be the strongest and then she'd be one step closer to killing-

The thought broke through her mind like a thunderbolt, sending her feat skidding out from underneath her. At the angle and height she was presently at, this proved deadly, as Sasuke vainly tried to cartwheel her frazzled and oxygen deprived body into a proper somersault.

Watching the earth come careening towards her, Sasuke could only wince as she prepared to catch the brunt of the fall with her side-

Only to land on something much softer then dirt and pebbles. Said something yelped in surprise and pain as her full weight pressed down on him, knocking him to the ground.

Blinking her eyes open, Sasuke pushed herself up, checking to see if anything was broken. Finding nothing particularily sprained or snapped, she turned towards her living cushion, knowing full well who she'd landed on, but still not really ready to accept she'd been saved by-

One Uzumaki Naruto, whose face was scrunched up tightly, cradling his nose. _'Oh what now?' _Not even bothering to hide the exasperated look on her face, Sasuke instead pulled herself off the boy; who, now able to breath, immediately complained about his nose hurting a lot.

"Well, yeah, I fell out of a tree. A person gains a lot of inertia when they fall from even that height." Deadpanning, she held out her hand to pick him up, Naruto's lupine eye squinting at her for a moment before taking his right hand away from his face to grasp hers. To his surprise however, Sasuke had frozen in place at the sight of his nose, which was currently bleeding profusely.

"W-whut?" Asking through a blood clogged nose, he looked at his hand as though it had transformed into spider before cupping it at his nose and clutching tightly. "Oh gawd, ohb gawd, not bloud! Gaugh! Bis dai sucqes!" Wiping his hand on the grass, he didn't notice the way Sasuke had suddenly frozen up slightly, very distracted by the small amount of blood Naruto had accidently left on her palm.

Wiping the blood away with a rag and stuffing a tissue up his nose, Naruto turned back to Sasuke looking apologetic. "S-sorby about dat. I bidn't tink it was dat bab." Although he attempted a smile, his ears gave his emotions away as deeply upset. Sasuke didn't immediately answer, instead turning back to her bag by the tree and taking a water bottle, before lightly running it along her hand and scrubbing almost furiously.

When she'd finished, she tucked the bottle away and turned towards Naruto, her face determined, yet unreadable. "Uh...joo okai?" Standing up, Naruto eyed his teammate a little warily, not sure what the face meant. The seconds ticked by.

"I...thank you...for catching me. It would've hurt. I might have been a little harsh when I said that you were useless." That said, she turned back towards her tree, before stopping. "But if you get ANY ideas that I've forgiven you for being such a wuss, or that I want your help, then I'll blow you out of your tree the next time you run up it." Letting her threat hang there, Sasuke trudged off towards her tree.

"O...kay..." Scuttling away, Naruto continued to fret over his precious person, while evaluating why they were so precious to him.

* * *

Some hours later, a sweaty Naruto and Sasuke walked into Inari and Tsunami's home, looking a little worse for wear. This didn't stop Kakashi from smiling as widely as someone with a mask could, eliciting a deathglare from Sasuke and the closest exasperated look one could get from Naruto.

"Well hey there you two! How'd training go?" Ignoring the way Sasuke twitched and walked off, her attention turned to Naruto, who rubbed the back of his head trying to pass the question onto someone else. Since there was no one else, he tried to find the best possible answer.

"Uh, well, it went okay. I got up almost the whole tree before the sun set, so did Sasuke, and also I met this mysterious woman in the forest after sustaining a concussion."

Long. Pause.

"What." Although not a question, Naruto treated it as one.

"Yeah, she was like this beautiful angel, halo and everything. She was also a lesbian apparrently, but she told me that after. She's actually the one who bandaged my head."

"What."

"Look, I know it sounds crazy, but I'm not lying! She told me about precious people and how I have to get stronger to protect them and gave me some mushrooms that weren't poisonous thank fully and why are you looking at me like that? I'm not crazy!" Sitting down at the table in the middle of the traditional japanese room in a huff, Naruto ignored the skeptical looks coming from everyone there.

Save Kakashi, whose eyes had glazed over in thought.

"That's good advice." She said finally, turning back to her book, leaving everyone else silent. "O...kay then. Yeah, so I ended up wandering back once the headaches went away, found Sasuke and trained with her until she fell out of that tree-" Palms slapping against the table, Naruto jumped in surprise as Sasuke pointed at him shouting.

"I didn't fall out of the tree; and you didn't catch me so much as cushion my fall! My foot slipped while I was distracted, and then you got blood on me!" Crossing her arms and glaring, Sasuke waited for a rebuttal. "You got blood on Sasuke! You pervert!" Was not the rebuttal she was expecting, the raven haired girl blanching at Sakura.

"That's not exactly what I meant!" She said, looking at the girl incredulously as said pinket eyed Naruto with new fury. "What you meant doesn't matter! First he steals your first kiss, and now he gets his nasty nose blood on you! All that's gonna be left for me is taking your-"

"Alright, that's enough! Sheesh, the kids going to get another nose bleed if you two keep talking like that." Motioning towards said boy, whose blush was threatening to engulf his hairline in flames. "What happened was an accident, the fact that Naruto was there to cushion your fall just shows that he isn't as useless as some of you seem to think he is."

"U-uh, actually, Sasuke-san mentioned that before we continued training. That I wasn't useless...and...stuff..." Shriveling under her deathglare, Naruto hid behind the table, his ears poking just above its edge.

"Dinner's ready!" Walking in with several bowls of rice, Tsunami placed the dishes infront of everyone, blatantly ignoring the tension in the room. There was a long pause as everyone reached for there respective chopsticks, Sasuke making a point to eat her food while glaring at Naruto with enough ferocity to make him remarkable uncomfortable.

Which didn't help the next few seconds of conversation as Inari suddenly piped up "Mom, what does it mean when a boy kisses a girl and then bleeds all over her with his nose blood?" Blinking confusedly for a moment, Tsunami gave Inari a look before asking him what he meant.

"Well, that's what Naruto did to Sasuke, and I've never head anybody doing that before." If anything, she looked even more confused, before turning to Kakashi, then Sasuke and Naruto, who were both blushing furiously, though Sasuke had the decency to look completely scandalized.

"A-ah, well, I mean, the kiss and t-the nose blood was an accident, and I mean, well, I wouldn't say I'm a boy KISSING a g-girl necassarily and uh...I'm just going to be quiet now." Taking what was probably the best course of action, Naruto sunk back into his seat as Sakura's scandalized face watched him.

"Alright, there's your answer Inari."

"Mom, I'm still confused."

"Just eat your dinner." She commanded, her eyes shut but voice demanding. Everyone complied.

* * *

_"Naaaaaaarutooooooooo."_

_"W-what?"_

_"NAAAAAAAAARUTOOOOOOOOOOOO."_

_"WHAT?"_

_"Guesss what?"_

_"What?"_

_"Your eyeballs are delicious."_

"GAH!" Snapping up in a heap of blankets with his eyes and ears flying around the room wildly, Naruto's erratic breathing slowly stopped, before he sagged, the dream(?)'s haze leaving his mind confused but certain that he was in reality.

He was also equally confused as to why his mind had just conjured an apparation of such benign horror. Or why he knew a word like begign when 'that shit was freaky yo' seemed to fit what had just transpired the same way.

Not bothering with a shirt, only to pull on some pants, he slunk outside, his tail lazily drifting through the door as it snapped shut, his mind trying to sort through its confused mess. Looking up from his thoughts, he found he had wandered into the docks, the pale moon casting long shadows of blue and darkness on everything.

Which was surprising, because a small figure in green overalls watched the same moon, not bothering to look at him.

"We used to come out here. Me and my dad. You know, before what happened...happened." Sensing the ominous way the youth said this, Naruto's ears twitched before he obliged by sitting down next to him and waiting patiently.

"He used to tell me these stories about the land of the mist. The stories he'd tell about the huge sea turtles of the ocean, or how the moon spirit Susano and the sun spirit Amaterasu fought the demon Orochi. Goofy stuff like that. When Gatou came, he stopped telling stories." The silence hung heavy, the reeds of the water drifting lazily on the cool breeze.

"U-uh...he...sounds cool. I didn't know my father...or my mother; so I guess its nice to have those memories of them."

"How would you know what its like?" The words were pierced with an accusing tone that took Naruto by surprise, his head snapping up. "W-what do you mean?"

"I mean how would you know what it means to watch someone like that DIE infront of them. To have nothing is blissful ignorance in my opinion, so don't talk to me about things you don't know anything about!" The last part grew to a low yell, though Inari didn't seem to care at all, considering waved his arms at this.

In the face of such opposition, Naruto's logic dictated that he should back down. But something about the way the once sweet boy had said this made his whiskers burn; not in embarassment; but in anger.

"I-I might not know what its like to LOSE someone important, but you at least HAD and still HAVE those people you care about! I've never had anyone! Do you-do you have any idea how lonely you get when your waiting for someone to tell you-JUST TELL YOU- that your not a coward, or a loser, or make you lunch, or kiss you wounds, or, or read you a story! Because I do know! S-so back off you...YOU BRAT!" That last part was punctuated by the smallest spike of killer-intent, that made Inari shirk back.

"You...you've never had someone read you a story?"

"W-well no...the closest thing I had was my school teacher...and lectures aren't very good stories." The silence of was thick again, almost as thick as the fog that had begun to roll in.

A beat.

"I...I'm sorry your father died. He was...killed by Gatou?"

"Yeah. I watched him die while they crucified him. Everyone did. So it's pretty important that you guys complete that bridge my grandpa's making; and kick his ass! What I'm trying to say is, please don't wuss out alright? Your in a team of girls for kami's sake!"

"Actually, Sasuke isn't that wussy, I've seen her beat grown men with there own arms."

"...and you've never done that?"

"No, no I haven't."

"...you have got to be the scaredest ninja ever." That said, the boy stood up, and turned to leave, before stopping. "Seriously though, kick his ass for me." That said, he continued for several paces, before stopping.

"Oh, and uh, by the way. Sitting on a dock with an eight year old shirtless...is pretty weird, so...yeah." His final peice said, Inari trekked off.

"W...what?"

The figure on the balcony smirked softly as Naruto scrambled off feeling naked. She flipped a page in her book.

* * *

"Sasuke-chan. Sasuke-chan! SASUKE."

"What?"

"We should totally les out right now."

"Huuuugh...no."

"I'm a lady, you're a lady, and we're alone in a room together. I'm not seeing what you seem to fall short on when making this conclusion."

"Sakura...just no."

* * *

"-and then she totally said no! Again!" Flailing her arms around to emphasize her story, Sakura waited for her captive audience to respond.

"So, wait, you're sure she's...you know..." The burly construction worker to her left said.

"She's two steps away from a mullet and a Khaki shirt, let's just put it that way."

"Wow. That's a whole lotta stereotype right there."

"Yes; yes it is. C'mon, you guys are all married, how do I...I don't know, get her attention, let her know that how I feel isn't just...hormonal!"

The circle of men at the construction site who had been listening; fascinated at Sakura's newest escapade to convince a certain teen idol to perform what is often refered to as the horizontal mamba with her, shrugged.

"...flowers work. I met my first girlfriend with flowers."

"I saved my relationship with flowers!"

"I proposed to my wife with a bouquet of flowers!"

"The same wife who took you for all your money and married a body builder from Tsuchigakure?" The man to his right spoke up, munching on a sandwich.

"Oh yeah...flowers; terrible idea."

"Horrible, simply horrible."

"Its the sign that your relationship is pretty shallow if you can express it only through a bag of flora." One man spoke up, leaning against a pile of wood.

"Well, I wouldn't say that'd be the only thing I'd use to express our love. Actually I'd like to go out dancing after the flowers, maybe some chocolates and faundoo at a fancy restauraunt, then a relaxing lay by the beach where'd I'd propose, and then she'd say yes and I'd take her right then in there in a pulse pounding display of carnal exstacy that would leave her shivering by the ocean like a vision of a mermaid, only able to gasp for more and more as I ravish her for everything her sublime body can muster, sending her over the edge of CARNAL PLEASURE!" By the end of it her face was flush, gasping for breath.

"...is it weird that that leaves me kinda...excited?" One man said to another

"A little."

"Alright you bums, listen up! Breaks over, so back to work!" Tazuna's voice suddenly caught over the rabble of conversation. "Welp, good luck with that girl. One thing though, aren't you a little YOUNG to be wanting to do all of...what was it again?"

"A carnal display of sensuality that would blind the unworthy if they should look upon it?"

"Yeah, that."

"Don't hold me to the standards your lesbian ninja's used to live by. Please, we're a modern people now, with modern and sophisticated views on things."

"Oh, look at the legs on her!" A catcall suddenly caught her attention.

"WHERE? Oh hey baby, you ever gone pink!" The man watched her seemingly teleport away, before looking off in the distance shrewdly. "I am so glad I wasn't that bad when I was there age. Seriously. YEESH." The man who was certainly not a hormone raging teenager at any point in his life walked off to his job.

He didn't make it far before a kunai lodged itself into his windpipe and a shout from his lips was the last thing he ever said. It wasn't wasted, because it was thanks to this that Sakura caught the assailant before she could murder the entire troupe of men currently watching a beautiful woman disintegrate into water.

"BACK OFF!" Prone on the ground the young Kunoichi didn't exactly have much room to bargain. Especially when the slab of heavy metal embedded itself in the ground between her legs.

"Gaugh!" Winching in surprise and fear, Sakura slowly looked up at Zabuza as she slowly rolled her neck, her eyes never leaving Sakura's face in the most unnerving way possible.

"Hey there..." Her voice hung in the air worse then any leer, and for the first time since she'd first met this woman, Sakura knew a new sense of fear.

And pain, as Zabuza violently batted her hand away and grabbed her by her bangs.

* * *

"Haugh...haugh...haugh..." Breathing in heavy, laboured gasps, he tried to regain some form of sense around himself, the last few seconds of hectic movement leaving him breathless.

Reorienting himself, he slowly cracked open his left eye, and his breath was taken from him again. Arms wrapped tightly around the top of his tree-trunk, Naruto surveyed the landscape of the forest, it's sheer breath taking him aback for a moment as the whole world seemed to just stop.

"It's nice up here." Sasuke calmly acknowledged from her own perch atop her tree, watching the sway of the leaves. "You wouldn't know one thing moment from another."

"Yeah."

"Don't ruin this for me."

"..."

"Well, that's it then. Trainings done, I'm heading back to the house, are you coming?" The fact she had asked this seemed odd to Naruto, but he didn't say anything, just nodding. Then it dawned on him.

"H-how do we...get down from here?" The question caused sasuke to raise a single, skeptical eyebrow, but seeing his serious face, sighed. "Your afraid of heights to?"

"Well after that incident a few days ago, I have been a little worried about it!"

Another overly exasperated sigh escaped her lips, the sigh following the wind. "Alright, I can see where this is going. So, rather then blow you out of the tree like I know I'd have to to get you to jump, I'll compromise. THIS TIME; and only because I don't feel like explaining later. But you have to PROMISE never to tell anyone about this, or I swear to god..." She let the threat hang there, Naruto knowing full well what she'd do.

"O-okay?" That said, Sasuke hopped from on tree to his, before grabbing his arm and pulling him up onto her shoulder. "W-what are you doing?"

"Relax, I read this in a manga once." Twisting around him, he only had a moment to yelp in surprise before she'd leapt from the tree, hauling his legs from under her like he was wounded. "A-b-b-b-b-b-a-AUGH!" His cries of terror went unheeded.

"Oh shut up, we'll be fine." Kicking off one tree, and then another, the two landed on the ground with surprising grace, Naruto holding on for dear life. "You can let go now." Sasauke's exasperated sigh escaped and slighed irritated sigh escaped her lips. "B-but I feel so safe." Despite its innocent origins, Naruto couldn't help sounding like a complete smartass.

Which earned him a one way ticket to tushy-painsville.

"Ow! Aye-aye-aye!" Gingerly rubbing the injured hindquarters, Naruto's wince turned into a confused frown as Sasuke walked off without explanation. "W-wait up!" Calling after her, the boys pain seemed to literally leave his mind, not because of a certain demonic ability though.

After walking for a short time, the silence started to be a bit to much for him, and being Naruto, he stayed quiet for as long as he could before finally braving dangerous waters. "So...what's your favourite color?"

This got a surprised expression out of Sasuke, who sent him an extremely quizzical look. "What the hell does that mean?" Seeing her suspicious look, Naruto thought about her question for a moment before shrugging. "W-well, I don't really know anything about you or Sakura...and since we're teammates and all...I thought I should try harder to get to know you...and Sakura...and maybe Kakashi-sensei...but she seems to be pretty secretive."

"That's a pretty flimsy reason to start interrogating me about my personal likes." The obvious hostility in the question didn't go unmissed by Naruto, but he he steeled himself. He would not be a coward twice in five minutes.

"I...I guess, but being a g-good team means we should know about eachother. Incase we ever...I don't know, need to use that information in a tight spot?" By the end of this, his voice was a squeek, but Sasuke actively thought about this for a moment. "I...guess that makes sense. Still, if thats true, then you have to answer a question of mine." That stopped Naruto for a moment.

"Uh...buh...I don't know."

"Hey, you're the one who wants to make us a better team. Its only fair." That made Naruto stop for a moment. "I...yeah, alright. But nothing too personnal okay?"

"Sure. To answer your question, I've actually always liked turquoise. I like blue, but turquoise especially." Naruto frowned in thought at this, stepping past a stone on the trail as they continued on. "I actually thought you'd like purple or something to be honest."

"There are a lot of things about me people don't get. But there's your answer, so here's my question."

"Why do you have fox ears and a tail?" That stopped Naruto dead in his tracks, a bead of sweat rolling down the back of his neck. "W-what do you mean?"

"Look, everyone pretends that you don't have what is the weirdest physical appearance ever, but that doesn't mean they don't notice. Its been a question that's been nagging at me for a while now, and I want to know. Why. Do you. Have a fox tail?" Emphasizing foxtail, she stopped in her tracks and watched him carefully.

"Its personnal, I asked you not to ask anything too personnal."

"My favourite color is personnal; and I still answered your question. So its only fair that you answer my question." Yet again, Naruto found himself in a lose-lose sort of situation with Sasuke, something that he was beginning to bemoan in a way.

"...o-okay. But you have to PROMISE not to tell anyone."

"Not even Sakura?"

"Nobody! I shouldn't even be telling you actually. I promised the Sarutobi-sama." That got Sasuke to raise an eyebrow. "You actually know the hokage?"

"Kinda. He's helped me out a few times when things got...bad. Are you sure you REALLY want to know?" The almost pleading way he asked this made Sasuke falter for a moment. But only just a moment. "I swear I won't tell anyone! Jeez, you act like telling someone why your fuzzy might end the world!"

"It might end my world..." He muttered, but Sasuke heard him. "C'mon, I gotta know!"

"Okay...what do you know about the day the Kyuubi attacked?"

Sasuke frowned, thinking things over. "The Kyuubi? What about it? A lot of people died, but the fourth killed it." Watching Sasuke's face, Naruto could tell she was having a little difficulty putting the pieces together.

"W-well, not EXACTLY. The fourth did DEFEAT the Kyuubi...but he didn't kill it. He put it inside me, and that's why I have these whiskers."

The silence was defening for several moments, and Naruto worried for a while whether Sasuke's mind had snapped. Finally however; "WHAT."

"I'm the container of the Kyuubi no kitsune. See, fox ears, fox tail, whiskers, the fact I have chakra-"

"WHAT."

"It's not THAT complicated, I mean it makes sense. My birthday was on October 10th-"

"The day of the attack!"

"Yes, which is why I was chosen as the Jinchuuriki-"

"Jinchuuriki."

"Power of human sacrifice. I was the sacrifice they needed to end the violence. Its okay though, I mean because they did that I got to be a ninja! I'm a boy, so you can imagine if I wanted to be a ninja then I probably would never become one but then it turns out I'm the vessel and all and then I got chakra and was a ninja!"

"That...still doesn't explain the ears and tail." Sasuke had a very deep frown on her face by now, and a bit of a headache.

"Oh...that...okay, I actually don't know why. One minute I was getting beat-up by some kids after school, the next I have a headache and this voice says something and then I have the tail and ears and chakra. It's kinda complicated."

"Very complicated." The silence resumed, Sasuke sitting down on the ground to think. This made Naruto very uneasy, but something compelled him not to say anything, just to sit in silence. The minutes dragged on for some time, before Sasuke finally said anything.

"Why is this a secret? I mean...granted its surprising, but still. Its not mindblowing." The way Naruto looked away only peaked her interest. "Its c-complicated. But when the Kyuubi attacked, it made a lot of enemies. Since its inside me, those..."

"Prejudice's."

"Prejudice's, right, were put on me. When I was little there were apparrantly attempts made on my life, but I don't remember them. It got so bad, the Sandaime issued a secret law that if anyone talked about the Kyuubi or me in relation to the other, they'd be severly punished."

"Death sentence?" The slightest paling of Sasuke's skin was only noticable if one really looked. _'This idiot isn't going to get me killed by this, is he?'_

"No-no-no-no-no! You just...go to a jail. Only one person ever broke the law actually. Mizuki-sensei, after he tried to steal the scroll." Sasuke nodded. "I heard a little about that. He was always a crappy teacher."

"Yeah...kinda. I already knew what I was when he told me, but still. It's nice to talk with someone about this. I've never actually told anyone." The small smile that lit up his face made Sasuke wonder how long he'd actually been keeping this inside him.

"Hmmm..." A thought suddenly occured to Sasuke. "What? Is something wrong?"

"Well...I've never really seen demon chakra before. I was wondering...would you mind showing it to me?" It was an odd question, but now that Sasuke knew why Naruto's chakra was red, it was something she wanted answered.

"You've seen me mold chakra plenty of times though."

"Never up close. I'm...just curious is all. What it's like." That made Naruto look off at some trees for a moment, but finding nothing essentially wrong with the idea, he decided to oblige. "Alright, but again, don't tell ANYONE about this."

"You have my word."

That said, Naruto snapped through a short string of handseals. **"Seisoku : Ganteretto" **(Gauntlet) At the final seal chakra poured out of his tenketsu, enveloping his hands like bubbling froth before solidifying into a solid mass on his hands. "This...is my chakra. It's chakra...whatever."

For several seconds Sasuke just looked at the appendage, tentatively taking it all in. "So...this whole time its been _demon's_ chakra."

"Yep!" The nonchalant way he said this made Sasuke feel more uneasy. "So...can I touch it or anything?" Though a part of her questioned WHY she wanted to touch the volatile substance, the larger part of her just wanted to know what someone elses chakra felt like. She'd molded her own, but only ever managed a basic whisp of it, like a warm wind.

"I...guess so? I mean, its kinda weird but-"

"Are you saying I'm weird?"

"Wha-no! Just that the question is...um...kinda...I guess its alright." Conceding since he himself had never had a problem with his chakra before, Naruto slowly stretched his chakra infused arm out.

Taking a long, slow breath, Sasuke stretched out her hand, feeling a small bead of sweat roll down her neck. _'Maybe I shouldn't be touching it.' _Weighing the pro's and con's for a moment, she shook her self, resolved to see this through. With a single finger, she brushed the bubbling mass.

It wasn't what she'd expected. Looking at it, she expected it to feel like bubbling grape jello. It didn't, infact, it didn't really have a physical impression to it save for a mild heat it exuded. No, it had a literal FEELING, an emotion infact.

ANGER.

Stab-tear-rip-chop-smash-clobber-HARM-DISFIGURE-ASSAIL-DESTROY-ANNIHILATE-OBLITERATE-

**KILL.**

Leaping back as if she'd been struck, Sasuke feel on her butt, holding her hand as if it were burnt. "A-are you alright?" Letting the technique fade away into nothing without a second thought, Naruto ran towards Sasuke, who was looking significantly disturbed. "C'mon, are you alright? Speak to me!"

The response he got was not one he was expecting, since the fist came out of relatively nowhere. Launched off his haunches, Naruto cartwheeled like a ragdoll before landing in a heap. Breathing heavily, Sasuke looked at her fist for a moment, before starring over at the prone Naruto.

"I...I didn't mean to..." Shaking her head violently, she stood up. "Whatever that demon's made of, it's not good. How do you keep from going insane?" Sitting up while cradling his head painfully, the boy send Sasuke a quizzical look.

"I d-don't know what you mean." Standing up wobbily, he tried to reorient himself, to little avail. "I mean how do you deal with that crazy voice that got...nevermind. Let's just forget this ever happened." Standing up, Sasuke walked away, but at a pace some might have noticed to be particularily hasty.

Naruto was not one of those people, so, looking confused, he stood up and quickly walked after her.

* * *

Things had gotten bad.

"If you don't hold still, how I am going to split you inhalf Kaka-hoar? You're not a very good partner!" Narrowly ducking under the half ton slab of iron, Kakashi knew better then to stop moving. "That brat of yours? She at least had some common decency!" The crazed way Zabuza was coming at her didn't make her feel comfortable even slightly.

"Dammit! Let her go Zabuza! This is fighting dirty, even for you!" Swinging the baton around to deflected another swing, she knew it was only a matter of time before the inferior metal wore away.

"Please, I'm just being a good ninja. Your lucky I haven't put her down already! So, here's the deal, I trade her, for Tazuna. Everybody walks home! Except the bridge builder, he's probably not going to be able to walk after I'M THROUGH WITH HIM!" With a single; deft overhead swing, Zabuza embedded the cleaver into the ground.

Seeing the opening, Kakashi leaped overhead, her weapon sweeping down towards the seemingly open Zabuza. She was proven wrong however, when using the now supported piece of metal, Zabuza swung her body around the handle, blocking with her right leg and kicking out with her left. Although the blow wasn't exact, it sent Kakashi spinning away. Carthwheeling before landing in a crouch, she eyed her now broke baton.

"You're crazier then I remember." Spitting this out, Kakashi fingered a kunai after throwing the batons to the side.

"Nah, I'm just letting you see my true face. Afterall, I want you to get an eyeload of the person whose going to kill you." With almost no effort the sword was pulled out from where it had sat, now tucked accross Zabuza's shoulder.

"Where's...SAKURA?" Feeling increasingly worried, Kakashi wondered just where the hell her other pupils were, and if they were in as much danger as she was in.

"Oh, you let my _apprentice _worry about her." The comment caught Kakashi offguard, giving Zabuza the fraction of a second she needed to get inside her guard before slashing towards her face, easily slicing through the top of Kakashi's kunai and coming within a hair's length of removing her-

* * *

**CLIFFHANGER!**

**Yes, yes I am a magnificent bastard. Didn't you read the flier?**

**Well that was silly of you. I sent them in the mail and everything! Anywho, Sasuke now knows what's inside Naruto! DUNDUNDUUUUUN! Oh, and Kakashi appears to be dead. Also DunDunDUUUUUUN. **

**What about Sakura?**

**Meh.**

**So, now that we have all that set up nice, I'm going to have to tell you guys I'm taking a month and some extra time off to do some work. FOR COLLEGE AND SHTUFF! You understand.**

**ACADEMIA AND CREDENTIALS AND WHATNOT! PIP-PIP-CHEERIO! WHAT-WHAT!**

**Harnessing the power of sunlight, I have deemed it fitting that I shall create a ray that will inexplicably cause people to WISH TO EXPRESS THEMSELVES VIA THE INTERNET IN A MATTER SIMILAR TO FORUMS! I WILL CALL THIS IMMACULATE CONCEPTION:**

**REVIEW: Whatchu thought bought dis' here thang! WHOOO!**


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